


Chakaar

by Charlie_chan16



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Adorable Baby Yoda (The Mandalorian TV), Beskar, Boys In Love, M/M, ManDadlorian, Mandalorian Culture, Mando'a
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:34:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24092917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Charlie_chan16/pseuds/Charlie_chan16
Summary: Chakaar - noun, meaning thief, scumbag; general term of abuse.“You’re a curious little one, aren’t you?” Jax said quietly, and the child looked up at his voice, babbling incoherently at him. “I’m curious too,” he told it, and it continued to stare at him, as if it was listening, head tilted to the side. “Someone told me that curiosity killed the cat, but I always say that I’m not a cat, so I can’t be killed by curiosity.”The kid tilted its head again, ears flicking and Jax huffed a laugh. “Yeah, I don’t get it either.”ORWhere a curious thief gets too involved with a grumpy Mandalorian and gains a family in return.
Relationships: Baby Yoda & The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV), Baby Yoda (The Mandalorian TV) & Original Character(s), The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Original Character(s), The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Original Male Character(s)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 124





	Chakaar

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, fine. I gave into my brain and gave Din a boyfriend. Am I ashamed? No. Do I think it ran away from me? Absolutely. Am I slightly worried over the fact that I can't write anything smaller than 3000 words? You betcha. Anyway, enjoy. 
> 
> Just, by the way if Mando is referred to as such - at least before his name is revealed in the fic it is Jax who is thinking but if he's referred to as Din, it is Din. 
> 
> Mando'a translations:  
> Chakaar - theif, scumbag, general term of abuse  
> Aliit ori'shya tal'din - family is more than blood  
> Cyare - beloved  
> Ad'ika - child, term of endearment  
> Di'kut - idiot  
> Aruetti - outsider  
> Ni cuy' juaan gar ratiin - I am beside you, always  
> Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum - I love you  
> Ni kelir cabuor gar ratiin, ner kar'ta - I will always protect you, my heart.

The ship landed harshly on the sand covered floor. Well, landing is a bit of a stretch. More like it crashed onto the ground, skidded for a few seconds and tilted to a stop with a groan of metal. It wasn’t a particularly good ship, and it had been on its last legs anyway. 

The engines belched smoke as the hatch was thrown open and a body tumbled out from the pilot’s seat, coughing harshly. A droid – an old R5 unit with its orange paint rusted – flew down to land next to the person, burbling at the human in a tone of annoyance. 

“Yeah, yeah I know you bag of bolts,” the man said, waving the droid off irritably. “I got us here alive though, so I’m marking this as a happy landing.” 

The droid shook its cone shaped dome in exasperation. 

Jax rolled his eyes at the droid before turning to get a better look at the trashed ship. Already the sand was coming up to cover the wings which were buried too deep for him to pry out. Flames licked at the engines and a black curl of smoke stretched up to the sky. It was a lost cause.

They couldn’t stay here. So many people would’ve heard them and that would open a whole world of trouble. So, he grabbed his vibro-blades and his pack from the compartment next to the pilot's seat and jumped down again, his boots hitting the sand. 

He turned to R5 saying, “so? You coming?” as he swung his pack across his back. 

And the two of them made their way slowly towards town, wandering under the blazing heat. 

Jax quickly threw up the hood of his jacket when they made it to the marketplace, wary of any bounty hunters in the area who would want a small catch. Although he had such a small amount on his head that he doubted many people would even  _ want  _ to bring him in. 

His eyes darted around warily anyway, snagging on the ‘trooper helmets collected in a pile, burnt black and melted. A shiver ran up and down his spine at the creepiness of it, but he shook it off, making his way deeper into the crowd. 

Jax was a thief. No other way to describe him. He stole what he needed to survive, and sometimes things he wanted. Hence the ship. The droid just followed him around as Jax had helped him out of a refinery and the bucket of bolts felt as if he owed him something. Jax had tried many times to get rid of it, but it always found a way back to him. He was starting to become endeared to the thing, even if it was irritable and grumpy on the best of days. 

Jax was good at what he did, apart from the off chance that he was spotted. Those never ended well and were the reason for his ‘bounty’. If he could even call it that. 

He’d stared at the number above his head incredulously when he’d found out how much was asked for him. And then raved about how unfair it was to whoever would listen, which was the open air in front of him. He was worth  _ way  _ more than two hundred credits thank you very much. 

He made his way through the market with ease, hands dipping in and out of pockets, purses and sometimes clothing until his own were clinking. This planet obviously didn’t have much in the way of pickpockets because the citizens were incredibly docile and easy to steal from. 

R5 had gone off on his own, warbling at Jax in disdain at the man’s actions before he left. So it meant that he didn’t have to wait for anyone and went at his own pace. 

He wandered the final fifty paces of the market with his hands in his pockets and his head down. That is, until he heard a cacophonous uproar behind him, and he began to pick up his speed not even daring to look back to check whether it was him the shouting was about. 

He quickly swung ‘round into an alleyway, ducking behind a few boxes at the back so he was hidden from view. 

He grinned mischievously as he pulled out the credits and a few trinkets he’d been able to snag. He looked at them curiously, rolling them over and over in his fingers. Some were tossed to the floor, others placed carefully in his pockets and the credits were stowed away in his pack which he then swung behind him again. 

He was about to move on when a noise caught his attention. His brown eyes blinked at another’s; his head tilted to the side as he took in the green thing in front of him. 

It was staring at him, its little three fingered claws clutching onto one of the trinkets Jax had tossed aside. Its big bat-like ears twitched to the side, and Jax felt like he wanted to stroke the peach fuzz decorating its head with a finger it looked so  _ soft _ . The thing stared at him in wonder. 

It was the oddest thing Jax had ever seen, but he could feel his curiosity get the better of him as he stretched out a gloved finger. 

It was grabbed hold of immediately, and Jax was surprised at its strength. It cooed and blinked its big brown eyes and Jax felt something inside him melt at the adorableness. 

He didn’t dare pick it up, not wanting to spook it, so he stayed crouched where he was, allowing it to inspect each of his fingers. It began to whine and tug on the leather, and Jax gently eased his glove off, tilting his palm to the sky. 

Again, it grabbed hold of his fingers. It didn’t look much older than an infant, and it certainly acted like it. Jax finally glanced up to see whether its parents were close by. He couldn’t see anything past the alley however and turned back to watch the kid inspect his fingers in curiosity. 

“You’re a curious little one, aren’t you?” Jax said quietly, and the child looked up at his voice, babbling incoherently at him. “I’m curious too,” he told it, and it continued to stare at him, as if it was listening, head tilted to the side. “Someone told me that curiosity killed the cat, but I always say that I’m not a cat, so I can’t be killed by curiosity.” 

The kid tilted its head again, ears flicking and Jax huffed a laugh. “Yeah, I don’t get it either.” 

His legs were getting tired, so he plopped himself down on the dusty floor. He considered the kid again. “So, where’re your parents?” he asked it, and, of course, it didn’t answer. Its attention was pulled away by a small bracelet Jax had pilfered from a well to do woman a while back, the jewellery inspected and then put in its mouth. Jax had to gently pry it away. 

“I guess they left you here to come back for you, huh?” Jax reasoned, glancing around once more before standing with a sigh. “Well, there’s no point of me staying here and possibly getting caught. So, you stay here and wait for your parents.” 

“So long kid,” Jax told him, flicking his hood back up onto his head before making his way out of the alley way. 

It didn’t take him long to notice he’d gained a shadow, and he tried to shoo the kid off every few metres. The kid toddled along behind him, giggling at Jax as if it were a game when the thief waved his hands at him in a gesture to leave. But the thief was getting genuinely concerned. 

He was inadvertently stealing a child, and he tried to speed up to lose the kid, but it stuck to him like a bad cold, finding the new ‘game’ terribly amusing. He got back to the wreck of his ship faster than he thought he would, spotting R5 waiting for him. 

The droid wailed on him when he spotted the child, demanding why it was here and whether he wanted to get stuck in a pile of shit. 

“It followed me!” Jax exclaimed. “What was I meant to do? Its parents weren’t around, and I couldn’t just hand it off to someone!” His hands flailed in worry as the kid babbled again. 

R5 asked where its parents were, and Jax answered with a shrug. He ran his hands through his dark brown hair, noticing absently that he needed a haircut as he gazed down at the kid. 

He was going to have an incredibly angry set of parents if he didn’t get the kid back any time soon. He felt bad for doing so but he picked the kid up under its armpits and placed it gently on his hip. 

“I’m going to take it back to the alley way I found it in,” he snapped at R5 when he warbled at him. “So you’re either coming or you’re not.” And Jax strode off back towards town, R5 trundling behind him. 

It didn’t take long to find the alley way again, and the kid's parent as a full armoured Mandalorian pointed his blaster at his head. 

“This yours?” Jax asked, gesturing with his head to the kid, whose claws were now making grabby hands towards the warrior and definitely not startling at the blaster aimed at his head. Nope.

“Don’t shoot,” Jax said as the helmet tilted in a nod and he lowered the kid to the floor, watching as it toddled over to the armour. 

“He found me in an alleyway and followed me back to my ship. Cute kid,” Jax told him, smiling brightly, all teeth and gums. 

“Thank you,” came the quiet, filtered reply as the blaster was put away and the kid was placed in a sling on the warrior’s back. 

Suddenly, R5 approached, warbling loudly and the blaster was back out again. Before Jax could protest, a shot went right through R5’s head, smoking slightly as his body crashed to the floor. 

“Dude!” Jax exclaimed, and the Mandalorian’s head snapped up to meet his annoyed gaze. “ _ Kriff, _ ” he swore, crouching next to R5’s smoking body. He didn’t notice the warrior quickly but gently place his hands over the little one's big ears.

“Damn. He was a good repair droid. Ah shit. Thanks a lot,” he snapped at the warrior before standing again and dusting off his pants. 

The kid cooed from where it poked its head over the Mandalorian’s shoulder. “I’m sorry,” the warrior said, not sounding at all sorry, and Jax sighed in annoyance. 

“Great,” he groaned, “that’s just…great.” He turned around abruptly, and missed the way the Mando jerked in place, watching his retreating back. 

The kid cooed from where it sat, and Mando glanced at it. He heaved a sigh, turning his gaze in the direction the man went. “Come on,” he said to the kid and began to follow him. 

Jax grumbled as he made towards the slightly better part of town. Well, there wasn’t much difference, other than the fact that the wallets and pockets were fuller than the others. Jax flicked his hood up once again, feeling a concoction of annoyance and anger bubbling in his stomach. 

He needed a ship. The one he came in was a bust. And for that he needed money. He wanted another droid too as he wasn’t the best pilot without one, so he stalked the town's streets, fingers dipping here and there and coming out with credits. 

He didn’t get very far however, and he cursed his inattentiveness when his wrist was suddenly caught in an iron grip. 

A twi’lek snarled down at him, lekku swinging behind them as he struggled to pry his wrist from their grip. “What do you think you’re doing, boy?” they asked, fingers tightening hard enough to bruise. “Those don’t belong to you.” 

And the credits were snatched from his fingers, his body colliding with the ground where he was thrown. “Well, they obviously don’t belong to you either,” Jax threw back, spying the blaster strapped to the guy’s waist. 

The twi’lek chuckled darkly. “It seems the little  _ street rat _ has some nerve,” they said, and Jax bristled, flicking his wrists to unsheathe his vibro-blades. “Oh ho, and some claws too.” 

The twi’lek didn’t even pull out their blaster as they lunged at Jax, and he suspected it was because they thought they wouldn’t be needing it. 

He sidestepped the attack easily, swiping one of the blades down to cut into the meat of the twi’lek’s shoulder. They hissed harshly, turning to snarl at Jax once again. He could see their muscles tensing as if they were going for another attack. But, with a flash of red light and the scent of burning flesh the twi’lek collapsed to the floor. 

Jax caught sight of the silver of beskar armour before he was suddenly being pulled away. “I had that!” he shouted at the back of the Mandalorian’s helmet, and the kid smiled, cooing down at him.

“It didn’t look like it,” the warrior quipped, tugging Jax down side streets and back alleys until they came across the most rundown ship Jax had ever seen. 

“Does that thing even fly?” he asked but got no answer as the warrior stalked up the ramp and into the cargo bay of the ship. 

Jax paused at the bottom, staring up at the vehicle with disdain and uncertainty. He slowly climbed up to the inside, peeking his head in as the engines started. The door behind him suddenly slid shut, and he could feel the ship take off. 

Jax stumbled to the ladder that he  _ hoped  _ led to the cockpit, climbing up deftly. He spotted the kid sitting in some kind of booster seat, hands reaching out for his again. 

“Where are you taking me?” he asked as he ran a gloved finger over the kids ears, marvelling at the way they twitched under them. 

“I’ll drop you at the next inhabited planet, least I can do,” the Mandalorian told him and Jax nodded. 

“And that would be?” he asked, leaning over the pilot’s seat to look at the many buttons and levers. 

He felt the warrior stiffen beside him, and he quickly inched back, muttering an apology. He didn’t know much about Mandalorians, apart from that they’re the best warriors in the galaxy, they never take off their helmets and they like their personal space. He took a seat to the left of the armour, crossing his legs to get comfortable. 

“Bespin,” the Mandalorian said, and this time Jax stiffened in his seat. 

“Ha, yeah no that’s not really the best idea,” he told the warrior, and he swung around in his seat for his t-visor to pierce him with a Look. 

“Why?” he asked simply, and Jax blushed in embarrassment. 

“I might’ve stolen something special from someone. So if I’m found there it’s either carbon freezing at best or being tossed from the city at worst,” he told him. 

“You stole from Lando Calrissian?” the Mandalorian asked, and Jax nodded slowly. 

“…yeah,” he admitted, and he could feel the weight of the sigh that echoed through the helmet. 

“Fine,” the warrior said, “but this is just as payback for shooting your droid.” 

“Oh, he wasn’t mine. He just followed me from Ryloth,” Jax said, shrugging. “But he was my co-pilot and the answer to my busted ship.” 

The Mandalorian sighed again, and Jax took that as his incentive to leave, not wanting to bother the warrior anymore. He made his way quickly down the ladder to the cargo bay. 

He didn’t dare go near the two bunks to the left, knowing it was probably Mando’s and the kids – made obvious by the copious amounts of toys scattered about the place. So, he made his way over to a corner placing his pack on the floor and leaning up against some boxes as he began to clean the dried blood off his blades. 

A coo drew his attention to the kid, who had somehow managed to get down the ladder. The little one watched curiously as Jax ran a rag up and down the flat of the blade, following the movement closely. 

“Curiouser and curiouser,” Jax mumbled, holding out a finger for the kid to hold onto. He lifted him deftly onto his lap, holding one arm around its tiny waist and handing it another tiny trinket to mess with. 

The child grew bored easily, wiggling to be let go and toddling over to his bed.

The thudding of boots on the ladder caused Jax to glance up. The Mandalorian’s boots landed on the ground, and he looked around for the kid. Jax pointed him out where the little one seemed to be trying to get into a weapons cabinet of sorts. 

“We’ll be arriving in four hours. Don’t worry it’s not Bespin,” Mando placated as he pulled the kid away from the heavy metal doors, and Jax nodded gratefully. 

“Can’t you—” 

Jax looked up as the Mandalorian cleared his throat to start again. 

“Don’t you have anywhere to go?” he asked, and Jax could feel his gaze set solely on him. 

“What, you mean family?” he asked, and got a slight incline of the head. “No. They’re either dead or willing to turn me in.” 

He could  _ feel _ the Look that got him, and he knew he would have to explain more, but he could feel the empty pit in his stomach yawning wide open. “My parents were on Alderaan when…” he didn’t finish the sentence, taking the sudden shifting of the atmosphere as recognition enough. 

Jax took a breath before continuing, feeling his eyes welling with tears. “I had been sent off planet on an errand for my father. Some kind of political signing I don’t really remember,” he said. “And I heard the news report and…I ran.” 

He sniffed quietly, wiping his eyes before laughing morosely. “Poor little rich boy left all by himself,” he murmured. “But I took to life on my own quite nicely I think. I didn’t like a pampered way of living anyway.” He realised this was the first time he’d told anything this. “You’re easy to talk to,” he told the warrior, and he could see the helmet jerking up in surprise out of the corner of his eye. 

He didn’t notice the kid approaching until the little one was trying to climb onto his lap, tiny hand coming up to pat his cheek uncoordinatedly. 

“Thanks kid,” he told him, running his finger across his brow, booping his tiny nose. The child sneezed adorably, and Jax laughed at him as he scowled cutely. “So, what about you? A Mandalorian bounty hunter playing lone ranger with a small green bean.” 

He could practically see Mando closing up, and Jax held out his hands placatingly. “Hey, you don’t have to answer. Sorry, that was a bit forward of me,” he said, but the warrior didn’t reply, instead turning swiftly to climb up the ladder to the cockpit. 

The silence and flight length gave him time to check his pack and weapons, sheathing his vibro-blades and pressing against the soles on his boots to check on the knives there. The kid had cooed at that, hands outstretched to touch them and Jax quickly slid them back in. 

“No, those are not for you,” he scolded, pushing the kid back gently to avoid injury. 

He found himself organising the credits he’d managed to snatch, finding he had just enough to buy the seat he’d need in the cockpit. He groaned loudly as he thumped his head back against a box. 

This would take a while. 

  
  


It had been about two months since the Mandalorian had given Jax a lift. And he felt as if he’d settled quite nicely. The planet wasn’t too cold, or too hot and Jax had been able to snag a bandana and some goggles to battle the harsh winds that often blew through his very bones. 

He hadn’t been caught, yet. But it was beginning to look highly likely he’d find himself behind bars. Especially if this job fell through, or if anything went wrong. 

He crouched next to the back entrance to an extravagant house, hood up, goggles on and bandana hung limp around his neck. He didn’t know what he’d find here, but he knew that twit had been booming too loudly in the cantina that it was impossible  _ not  _ to steal from him. 

The door opened with a click, and Jax glanced around quickly before darting inside. The corridor was blissfully cool, and Jax tread down on silent feet as he made his way for the first door on his right. 

No one was in, and he’d made sure of that beforehand. He wasn’t stupid, curious yes, but not stupid. 

He made for the desk in the middle of the room, gloved hands pulling open the drawers with ease before quietly rifling through masses of paper. Nothing of value here. 

But a safe underneath the wood of the desk caught his eye. Jax looked around and listened intently, checking whether he was in the clear before crouching down to lean his head closer to the metal box. 

The lock looked complicated, but not stressful as Jax pulled out his tools to get started. 

Whatever was in the safe was incredibly valuable as it took a while to get it open. Longer than Jax wanted, and he heaved a sigh in relief when the door finally opened. 

A box sat innocently within the confines of the safe. It was made with a high quality durasteel and was small. When Jax tried to pull it out however, it was incredibly heavy. He huffed and the box landed with a loud thump on the floor. 

His eyes immediately darted to the door and he held still for a few seconds, watching the doorknob to ensure no one heard him. 

The house was quiet, there wasn’t any movement from outside. He turned his gaze again towards the box, and he ran his fingers over it. 

It was unusually cold, and he looked for a lock or something to pull it open. He placed his hand against the top to lean down to look at the bottom of the box and it suddenly slid down, the locking mechanism clicking as the front of it gently fell open. 

He curiously stuck his nose into the box, taking in the metallic scent as his brown eyes snagged on the blocks of silver stacked inside. 

They were small, but they were obviously valuable with the way they had been stored. The imperial symbol was embedded in the corner, and Jax ran his fingers over the steel in awe. He had no idea what they were, but he knew he wanted them. 

So, he swung his pack from his back, unzipped it and began to put the small pile of metal inside. 

He could hear footsteps coming from the corridor, and he quietly closed the door of the safe. He couldn’t go out the way he came so he crept towards the window behind him, his soft sole boots treading lightly. 

He eased the window open and hopped up onto the sill. The footsteps were getting louder and Jax quickly dropped down to the ground. 

He could hear the door being thrown open, the knob hitting against the wall as he ran for the main market. Shouts were heard behind him and he continued to run, goggles and bandana back up again. 

He dodged multiple persons, swinging quickly into an alleyway, watching the guards he’d spotted in the front of the house the other day run past, armour clanking. 

His heart rate calmed, and he felt a bead of sweat run down his back as he allowed himself to slump back against the dusty wall in relief. He patted his pack in reassurance and began to prep to leave. 

He had to move on. The guards and whatever high standing lord had that box would be looking for him and he didn’t need to be caught and possibly killed. 

He inched his way slowly out of the alleyway, looking left and right before he darted out into the open, hood up and one hand clutching the strap of his pack. 

He’d been walking for a few minutes before he suddenly heard a familiar coo and he glanced behind him. 

He instantly recognised the gleaming silver armour and intimidating helmet. And he caught sight of the little one smiling at him over the warrior’s shoulder, little hands grabbing for him. 

“Fancy meeting you here,” Jax said as casually as he could while he caught his breath. He could hear the soldiers looking for him two streets over, and Mando tilted his head as if he were listening.

“They looking for you?” he asked Jax, and he shrugged in return.

“My bounty got bigger. And I might’ve stolen from a few important people,” he said, glancing behind the Mandalorian’s hulking form. “But how’ve you been?” 

“Have we met?” the warrior asked, and Jax laughed for a few seconds before realising he wasn’t kidding. Although, to be honest he was wearing his thief getup. 

He hurriedly pulled down the goggles and smiled at the warrior. He could see the recognition in the tension of his shoulders. But Jax didn’t have time to mull over that as a pair of guards appeared at the end of the street behind Mando. 

“You might want to duck,” Jax told him as the guards darted down towards them. It took the warrior two seconds to compute the request and finally crouch so that Jax could see over the silver of his helmet. 

He swung his leg expertly, unsheathing his blade at the bottom of his boot with great ease before it collided with one of the guard’s head, sending the man soaring into a building on the right.

Quick as a whip, Jax set one of his vibro-blades flying at the other guard, and the weapon landed dead centre of his chest and the man collapsed to the dusty floor. Jax collected the blade before turning towards Mando. 

“There’ll be more of them, so I’d like to move if you’re coming,” Jax told him, and the warrior took the lead. 

The adrenaline was pumping in Jax’s blood now and he was barely noticing his pack knocking gently against his ribs. It made him skittish as the Mandalorian continued to weave through the streets. The kid had managed to turn in its sling to look at Jax, and the thief wiggled his fingers in a wave. 

The child spent the next ten minutes trying to imitate it and Jax found it the most adorable thing he’d seen in months. 

They approached an awfully familiar ship, and Jax gazed up at it. He watched as the warrior climbed into it, but he felt hesitant to follow. 

But one look behind him at the fast advancing guards spurred him up the ramp. He could see the kid sitting on its tiny cot, fiddling with its toys and Jax took a seat at the tiny table by the kitchenette. 

He gently placed his pack on the surface, unzipping it with care. He pushed aside his few belongings before staring in awe at the gleaming metal at the bottom. 

Gently, oh so carefully he glanced his fingertips against its cool surface, running a nail over the symbol in the corner. He was so entranced by it that he didn’t notice the kid until he was tugging on the cloth of his trouser leg. 

He glanced down to the eager face and curious hands and placed his own carefully under the kid’s armpits. He sat him gently on his lap and watched as he giggled and grabbed for his lock pick. It wasn’t an extremely dangerous tool, the end was blunt, much like a droids access port. So he wasn’t worried about the kid hurting himself when he stuck it in his mouth. 

But he tugged it away anyway because neither he nor the kid knew where it had been. The child’s eyes welled with tears. “Ah, ah no crocodile tears. Look,” Jax said, holding up his hand and wiggling his fingers. 

The tears cleared up quickly, big brown eyes locked intuitively on Jax’s digits. The kid reached for his fingers, and Jax brought them down to his lap, not minding in the slightest when the little one began to inspect them. 

“I wonder whether your dad has named you,” Jax murmured, jiggling his leg up and down and drawing a delighted giggle from the child. “I can’t exactly keep calling you kid, or child, or little one.” 

The kid didn’t answer, merely gazed up at him. His tiny fingers reached for a strand of brown hair when Jax picked him up to stare into his eyes. 

“Ow,” he said quietly, and the child immediately stopped pulling, eyes suddenly wide in concern. The hair was dropped as if it were scalding hot and Jax laughed as the child patted his hands against his cheeks in comfort. 

“I’m alright little one,” he placated, “just don’t pull so hard, alright?” 

The kid was sitting on Jax’s lap again and he reached into his pack to bring out the metal. 

He was turning it over and over in his fingers, not even taking notice of the thumping of the Mandalorian’s boots on the ladder, he was so interested in the metal. 

“Where did you get that?” Mando’s filtered voice asked, causing Jax to almost jump out of his skin. The kid cooed in his lap, and Jax felt as if he was laughing at him. 

“I stole it,” he said nonchalantly, pulling out the other pieces of metal from his bag and placing it gently on the table in front of him. “The big wig back on Garion. He was boasting about a large treasure he had, and I thought that a bastard like that deserved what was coming for him.” 

Jax shrugged, not noticing the intense and incredulous stare he was getting through the helmet. “What is it?” he asked curiously, turning another piece in his hands.

“It’s beskar,” Mando replied after a few seconds of silence. “My people use it to make our armour.” 

Jax looked up in interest, finally taking in the similarity to the warrior’s armour and the metal he held in his hands. 

“To most, it’s an expensive metal. But to Mandalorians it’s precious. It was stolen from us when the Empire took over,” Mando explained, and Jax turned his gaze back to him. “It’s highly valued for us, and there isn’t much left that isn’t in the Empire’s hands.” 

He furrowed his brows in thought as he began to pull out the other pieces from his pack. There were eight in all, and he stacked them with care one by one. He could feel the weight of the warrior’s gaze on his body as he gently pushed the pile towards the Mandalorian. 

“What’re you doing?” he asked quietly as Jax zipped his pack up again. 

“Take it,” Jax answered, nodding towards the pile. “I have no use of it because I don’t have a forge to melt it. Or a use for it as my line of work doesn’t call for heavy armour. And judging by that right leg, you’re missing a bit.” 

The warrior seemed to consider him for a few moments, judging to see whether there were any ulterior motives. There wasn’t, Jax didn’t mind handing the metal over as he was perfectly honest with his reasoning. A thief had no need for armour, it weighed him down and if he got shot, he got shot.

So if it were to be used for its intended purpose for the right person, he didn’t mind losing the credits. Although he was going to have to figure out another plan to get a ship. 

“Thank you,” the Mandalorian said, tilting his head. The gratitude was obvious in his voice, but Jax would never know how big of a deal it was to the warrior. Or how grateful he was. 

The metal was placed in one of the many cargo boxes surrounding the bay, and Jax watched how gently the warrior held them. He felt as if he were interrupting a private moment. The kid suddenly giggled from where he sat on his lap, effectively distracting him from his staring. 

“Does the little guy have a name?” he suddenly asked, jiggling his knee again to draw out more joyous giggles. “And more to the point, what do I call you ‘cause I can’t keep calling you the Mandalorian.” 

“He has no name,” came the answer, and Jax stared at the little one sadly. 

“Have you tried naming him?” he asked quietly, running a gentle finger over the peach fuzz on the child’s head. 

“No. I will wait until he’s older for him to tell me,” the warrior replied. 

“And what about you?” Jax asked outright. “Or is Mando alright for the time being?” 

The helmet jerked slightly, whether in a flinch or something else Jax couldn’t tell. “Mando is fine,” he replied, voice sounding slightly gruff. 

But Jax smiled widely at him, stretching out a gloved hand for a shake. “Well, it’s nice to meet you Mando. I’m Jax, and I must thank you for saving my hide for a second time.” 

Mando stared at the hand for a few seconds, as if Jax were presenting him with a ticking bomb. But, finally he placed his palm in Jax’s shaking it firmly before dropping it quickly as if it were hot. 

The rumbling of the ship’s engines caught Jax’s attention and he realised they were in hyperspace. “Where are we going?” he asked, surprised that he didn’t feel too pressed on where they would end up. 

“Nevarro,” Mando replied, and Jax tilted his head in slight confusion as he had no idea where that was, watching as the warrior made his way up into the cockpit once more. 

But he didn’t bother answering, as long as it was a safe planet without a large Imperial presence, he was happy. 

The kid seemed happy too, and incredibly interested in Jax’s fingers again. The thief had to pull off the gloves again when the child tried to take them off himself, almost pulling the leather. 

He was quite proud of his hands; it was the one thing that showed what kind of life he’d had and what he’d been through. There were small scars from where he nicked himself training with his blades. Calluses on his thumbs and forefingers from their grips and the beginnings of his freckles on his wrists. 

The kid trailed his own clawed hands over Jax’s long fingers, and the thief himself grimaced at the bitten nails. That was a nasty habit he’d never gotten himself out of. 

Suddenly bored, the little one gracelessly climbed down from Jax’s lap, toddling over to the ladder that led to the cockpit. He stopped there, turning to stare at the thief until he huffed and stood from his seat, picking up the kid again to bring him up. 

Jax had seen space many times, but it always managed to take his breath away. He didn’t recognise any of the constellations, but he didn’t mind as he stared at them reverently. The kid squirmed in his arms, and Jax placed him into his little seat to the right of Mando and took his own to the left. 

They didn’t talk, but Jax was entertained enough watching the kid try to grab a small silver ball screwed on the end of a lever. It took a few tries before Mando finally gave in, dropping the thing into the kid’s hands where it was promptly chewed on. 

Jax chuckled quietly, and the kid’s big brown eyes locked on him and he giggled. 

Jax watched curiously as Mando pressed buttons and flicked switches, steering the ship with great care. It was an old model, Jax had never seen anything like it but he expected it was before the Empire’s time at least in age. 

“I’ve never heard of Nevarro,” Jax began and Mando’s helmet tilted slightly to the side. “What’s it like?” Jax asked, arranging his feet criss-cross applesauce on the seat as he pulled out one of his blades to flick over his fingers absently. 

Mando seemed to stall for a few seconds. “It’s a volcanic planet,” he said finally, hesitantly and Jax realised he probably never needed to make small talk. “We’ll only be here for a few hours.” 

“Oh,” Jax said sadly, not noticing that ‘we’ implied him as well, as he assumed it meant Mando and the kid. He wallowed for the last leg of the journey, mulling over in his head what he was going to do next. 

He was stuck in his own head, and the kid cooed at him, tilting its head in confusion when Jax looked at him with a sad smile. Mando noticed it too but didn’t say anymore as he brought the ship into land. 

Jax sighed, standing from his seat to grab his pack. He was placing it over his shoulder when Mando came down the ladder as well, striding to the door to open it. 

The box containing the beskar sat in his palm, and if Jax didn’t know any better he would’ve thought it just contained something menial. The warrior turned to him when the ramp descended fully.

“Stay with the kid, don’t let him be seen,” Mando told him, and Jax gaped for a few seconds before it clicked. He was allowed to stay on the ship. 

He saluted two fingers at the man. “Aye, aye Cap’n’,” he said and watched the Mandalorian’s retreating back as he ran that over in his head. He was actually  _ wanted  _ somewhere. The kid cooed happily at him from where he stood beside Jax, and the thief picked up the little one with the biggest, stupidest grin stretching his lips. 

“Well, I guess you’re stuck with me,” he told the child, and the little one giggled joyfully, hands reaching forward to grasp onto Jax’s face. 

The two of them stayed in the ship, Jax entertained by watching the kid toddle around. The kid presented a toy to him every few minutes, holding it out for him to take. He thanked him each time with a bright smile, turning it over in his hands. 

He glanced to the doors every half an hour, expecting Mando to stroll through and toss him out. 

Jax suddenly found the kid rifling through his pack, inspecting each thing. He sighed and stood from his seat. “What do you think you’re doing, huh?” he asked in a scolding tone that had no traction. “You’re a little minx, sticking your nose in other people’s belongings.” 

The kid didn’t seem to care, just babbled, and reached for the opening of his pack again. Jax sighed and sat, pulling out trinkets he’d stolen that turned out to have no real value. 

It didn’t seem to be what the kid was looking for however, as each and every sparkly thing was inspected and then tossed away. His little hand suddenly grasped hold of something, and he held it up for Jax to see. 

Jax’s brown eyes widened slightly at what he’d found, but he smiled to reassure the little one when he frowned cutely in concern. Jax took the data disk gently from the kids grabby fingers, turning it over in his fingers. 

“This,” he began to tell the little one, “is a photo of my family. It was the only one I had on me when I left. It’s very precious.” And Jax felt as if the kid understood because his little claws took it again with reverent fingers. “So you have to be careful.” 

Din Djarin liked many things. He liked spices for one, the kid for another. But one thing he liked to do while passing the time was watch the Armourer mould beautiful pieces of beskar in the great roaring fires of her forge. 

He sat quietly, palms lying flat on his legs as he watched the beskar melt to form a leg brace. He needed one, it was the last piece of his armour he had to upgrade. 

He knew Jax probably had no sense of Mandalorian culture. He didn’t even know how much wealth he had held in his hands. And Din had been almost knocked flat when the pile of beskar had been given to him. 

The precious metal was incredibly precious to his people. It was considered a marriage proposal if one gave beskar to another. But, Din didn’t really take that meaning to heart, he saw Jax wanted to do a kind thing and not realising what he had done inadvertantly. That didn’t stop the raging blush appearing high on Din’s cheeks at the insinuation. 

The glow of the bellows dimmed finally, and the gold helmet came into Din’s eyesight. His new leg brace was held out to him, and he clipped it on easily, standing to admire his now completed armour. 

Another piece was wrapped in cloth and handed to him. 

“I’m surprised you managed to find more,” the Armourer commented. “Considering how rare it has become, I’d say you almost have a nose for it.” And Din could hear the laughter in her voice. 

“I didn’t find it,” he told her, and the helmet cocked to the side.

“Oh? Then who did?” 

Din considered what to say for a few seconds. If he said it was given to him, then the Armourer would want him to present his new partner-to-be. But that would probably freak Jax out, and Din didn’t really want to lose his first crew mate. Or he could lie. But that never worked, even  _ with  _ the helmet the Armourer always managed to call him out. 

“A friend,” he replied simply, and was pleasantly surprised when she didn’t prod anymore. 

“Well, you might want to go before Paz gets here. He’s been wanting payback for his busted jetpack,” she told him, and Din inclined his head, swiftly turning and heading out of the Covert. He was anxious to get back on the ship and get moving. 

Jax was playing a game with the kid when Mando returned. He blushed bright pink when he was spotted chasing the little one around the ship. “Oh! You’re back,” he said breathlessly, watching as the kid wandered over to his father, hands outstretched to be picked up. “He was getting a bit restless, so I thought I’d tire him out. It seemed to have backfired.” 

“Thank you,” Mando replied, stepping further into the ship. He placed the little one in his cot before making his way up to the cockpit. Jax stayed, watching the ramp rise, and cut off his view from the planet outside. 

He picked up the toys he and the kid had spread out over the floor and placed them into a box next to the kid. He ran a gentle thumb over his ears and startled once he felt the floor beneath him shudder. 

He climbed up the ladder easily and took his seat. “Where’re we off to next?” he asked, tilting his head to get a look at the navigation systems. 

“Ithor,” Mando replied. “Need a backwater planet for the kid to stretch his legs.” Jax nodded in understanding and drew his legs under his chin to spend the journey looking at the stars. 

Around two hours to landing, Mando tossed Jax a ration bar from a compartment. He nodded his thanks and ate without complaint. After all, when he’d first been out on his own he ate worse from bins behind cantinas. And that was an experience he’d never experience again. 

Ithor turned out to be a green planet, with half of it being a big expanse of water. They landed within the shade of a large tree, and the little one practically ran to get outside. Jax had to quickly grab him to prevent him from stepping in something dangerous and waited for Mando to give him the clear to let go. 

Ithor had no native population, only a handful of animals who usually stayed deep within the forest. Well, that’s what Mando told Jax at least to ease his worry about the kid being eaten or taken. 

The sounds of some sort of avian creature in the trees caught Jax’s interest and he craned his neck to get a look at them. He turned in a circle with his head tilted back, and Mando stared at him in confusion. 

“What are you doing?” Mando asked him, taking a leaf out of the kid’s mouth absently.

Jax paused in his turning to look at the warrior. “Just looking,” he said, and didn’t explain further. 

Din observed that Jax was a very curious person. He watched carefully as the thief crouched among the planet's greenery, picking up individual plants to twirl in his fingers. He’d pocket some after inspecting them. He passed others to the kid, who followed along behind him with a wide smile. 

The four of them finally turned up at the shore, grey sand stretching out in front of them to meet the blue sea. Three legged crustaceans scuttled along the grains, and the kid found great entertainment in chasing them. Din had to quickly pry a few from his fingers when they gravitated towards his mouth. 

Jax had deposited his boots on the sand, rolling up his trousers to step into the water. He yelped at the cold and whipped his head around to frown playfully at Din when he chuckled quietly. He was surprised Jax could hear him from there. 

But, the thief persevered, wading into the water until it met his knees. There, he stopped, placing his hands on his hips to just stand and listen. 

Din headed back to the ship for some ration bars and blankets, confident the kid would be fine exploring the sand around him. And if there was trouble, Jax was right there. 

He came back to see the beginnings of a structure in the sand, Jax patting the stuff down into walls while the kid happily created tall piles. The blankets were spread out a few yards away, corners tucked into the sand to prevent them flying away. 

The kid toddled over when he spotted the food, little hands grabbing for the packet in earnest. Jax came over to join them, and the ration packs were gobbled down greedily. Din realised they were going to have to get more provisions on the next planet. 

The kid seemed too tuckered out to finish the fort they were building and decided to curl up in Din’s lap for a sleep, tiny hands grabbing hold of the collar of his cape. Jax smiled adoringly at the two of them before turning to continue construction by himself. 

He mapped out a bridge, three other towers and a lake before he finished, sitting back to admire his work. Grey sand covered his hands, getting under his fingernails. Din found himself looking at them, wanting to take them within his own. 

He didn’t realise he was staring until Jax sighed, combing his fingers through his brown hair, grains of sand weaving their way through. He seemed to consider the structure before suddenly swiping his hand across it, flattening, and demolishing it until there was nothing left to say that it was there. 

He made his way over to the blankets, flopping down on his back with a huff. Din turned his head to look at him, brow furrowing underneath his helmet. 

“I’ve never had this much time to relax before,” Jax began quietly, placing his hands behind his head. “It’s always been trying to get to the next planet, next town, next score.” 

And Din could relate to that feeling of restlessness, always feeling as if he were in danger if he spent more than a night on the same planet. That wasn’t helped by the fact that both he and the kid had bounty hunters on their trails. 

And with a jolt, he was suddenly reminded of the fact that he’d never explained to Jax what had happened and hadn’t prepared him for what might suddenly catch up to them. He cast his gaze down to the kid. Would Jax even stay if he knew who was chasing them, about  _ why  _ they were in the first place; about the kid’s powers. 

He thought about telling him then and there, get it off his chest. But suddenly Jax stood up, pulling the blanket from the sand. “We should head back to the ship, put the little one to bed,” he said, and Din nodded in agreement, standing up carefully and tucking the kid into the crook of his elbow. 

The trip back was short and uneventful, and Din put the kid into his cot gently. He spotted the bundle of cloth on his own, remembering it suddenly. He picked it up and made his way to Jax who had taken a seat at the small table in the kitchenette. 

He placed it in front of him, taking the other free seat to watch the thief look at it in curiosity. 

“What’s this?” he asked, reaching out as if it were a live animal. Din didn’t answer, opting to observe as Jax opened up the cloth. 

A gorgeous beskar vambrace sat within the safety of the cloth, its clean lines and pleasing shape gleaming in the ship's lighting. Jax looked down at it in awe, and he picked it up reverently. He turned it over in his fingers, taking in every inch of the piece of armour. 

“This is for me?” he asked, the disbelief clear in his tone and his widened eyes when Din nodded his head. “I-I can’t take this. You said so yourself that the metal is precious. So why waste it on me instead of giving it to a Mandalorian who needs it?”

“Because you need it,” Din told him, and Jax gawked at him, realising that it fit his left forearm perfectly – his dominant knife hand. “If you’re going to be travelling with us, you’ll need some form of protection.” 

“But I’m not a Mandalorian,” Jax said, almost helplessly, pushing the vambrace back across the table.

“I know,” Din said, pushing it back again. He was willing to be stubborn if it meant Jax would take this gift. It was him who found the beskar, so it was only right if he got a piece of it. 

“Thank you,” Jax said, finally giving in and wrapping the armour back up in the cloth carefully. When Din tilted his head, brows furrowing behind his t-visor, Jax scrambled to explain. “Well, I don’t  _ really  _ need to wear it now.” 

That seemed to jinx them as something rocked their ship from outside, the sounds of blasters very evident. And Din had a bad feeling he knew what it was. 

Bounty hunters. 

There were bounty hunters shooting at the ship. Three in all, two using blasters, one held a menacing stick. Jax considered himself screwed as he barely had time to grab his vibro-blades. Mando quickly snapped the door of the kids cot shut. 

“You take the guy with the baton,” Mando told him, and Jax nodded in understanding. 

He ducked and weaved around the blaster bolts and realised these guys weren’t the best of shots. They weren’t as bad as ‘troopers, but they were getting there. A stray bolt grazed his left arm, and he hissed in pain. 

He regretted not wearing the vambrace, but he pressed forward. He and the other bounty hunter circled each other, and he heard Mando’s blaster behind him. 

Jax lunged forward, slashing with his right then his left hand, and then quickly swinging his boot up towards the hunter’s face. The first two hits were dodged, the last just barely, and a thin stream of blood trickled from a small gash on the hunter’s cheek. 

Jax smirked at the hunter, who came forward with his stick swinging downwards. Jax dodged to the side and sidestepped again when the hunter advanced. 

It seemed to turn into a dance, and the sounds around him faded away as his whole mind focused on the battle. His body seemed to move like liquid, and he barely seemed to notice the warm blood trickling down his arm, or the calming inhale-exhale of his breath, the sounds of the blasters suddenly dying out behind him. 

He finished off the guy quickly, the left blade finally making a solid hit into the guy’s abdomen, and Jax twisted the blade for good measure. The hunter gasped in agony, and Jax followed him down to his knees, gently lowering the hunter all the way down to the ground.

He finally came back to himself, noticing the blood over his gloves, his own and his opponents. He desperately tried to wipe it away on the cloth of his trousers, but it seemed to spread it over the cloth, making a gruesome scene. 

He noticed the thudding of footsteps behind him and he reacted, standing quickly, and swinging his blade up to slash across the person’s face. But his arm was caught in a tight grip before it could reach its target, Mando’s helmet staring down at him. 

Jax could see his face in the reflection, his sweaty forehead, wide, terrified eyes, and open mouth gasping for breath. 

“Hey,” Mando said quietly, carefully taking his blades away and sheathing them. “They’re done. We need to leave, now.” They stood there for a few seconds, letting Jax catch his breath.

And the warrior began to shepherd Jax towards the ship's entrance, leading him in and seating him at the table before making his way up the ladder to the cockpit. 

Jax felt as if he were floating above his body, watching his bent form with mild disinterest. His breathing had calmed somewhat, but he could still hear it rasp through his lungs shallowly. His hands shook where they sat it his lap, and the blood coming from the graze on his arms  _ plip plip plipped  _ onto the floor below him. 

He didn’t know how long he sat there, brown eyes tiredly and dazedly staring at the wall across from him. It could’ve been hours, or minutes. 

Mando suddenly appeared in his viewpoint, crouching down to carefully inspect the wound on his arm. He stood to grab an old first aid kit, cleaning the graze and fumbling with the bacta patches and gauze until he huffed. 

Jax could hear the hiss of a door behind him, and Mando returned with the kid in his arms. 

“What’re you…?” Jax asked tiredly, but Mando somehow sent him a Look through the visor in his helmet. Jax snapped his jaw shut, tears spilling over and down his cheeks. He’d fucked up. He’d fucked up and he was being kicked off the ship, and Mando had brought out the kid to confirm it. 

He watched as the kid suddenly took notice of the gash on his arm. He made a high pitched noise of distress, glancing at his dad. “It’s okay,” Mando told him, and Jax watched in confusion as the kid stretched out his hand. 

His eyes widened as he observed the skin of his arm slowly knitted itself together, the bleeding stopped and the faint throbbing he’d felt ceased. Jax stared as the kid yawned widely and blinked up at him sleepily. 

Jax blinked a few times himself, turning his gaze from his arm to the kid, to Mando and back again. 

Din watched as Jax laughed almost hysterically, murmuring something that sounded like “space magic,” and flopped over sideways. 

Thanks to his quick reflexes, Din was able to prevent the thief from toppling onto the ground and cause himself more injury, catching in his arms after placing the child down on the floor. 

The kid cooed in concern. “No, no you did good kid,” Din assured him, and he had. Jax’s arm looked good as new, it must’ve been the adrenaline crash and possibly a bit of shock that had sent him keeling over. 

He hoisted the thief up into his arms, one behind his shoulders, the other under his knees and made his way over to his own cot. Jax’s breathing had finally calmed, and he looked peaceful in sleep. 

He shifted when Din was about to put him down, hands coming up to clutch against the edge of his chest-plate. He murmured slightly in his sleep when Din tried to remove his fingers and go up to the cockpit. 

The kid suddenly hopping up caught Din’s attention and he watched as the little one inched his way into Jax’s arms. He was surprised when the man immediately latched onto his little form, drawing him to his chest and tucking his head under his chin. 

Din sighed in relief, making his way up to the pilot’s seat to keep an eye on their trajectory. He felt a warm kind of feeling every time the image of the child and Jax came to mind, one that turned his mind fuzzy and his cheeks warm. He paid no mind to it. 

The familiar green planet warmed Din’s heart as he brought them out of hyperspace. He knew they’d all need a new place to relax for a bit, and he could tell both the kid and Jax were itching to leave the ship. Din had to admit he was getting a bit antsy himself and spending three days in the same confined space was not fun. 

He could hear the kid giggling from where he sat, and behind his helmet he smiled. He thought it was good to have someone entertain the little one, and he’d be amongst kids his own age to have fun and play with. 

Din brought them in to land expertly, the huts of the village visible through the trees. He had no doubt Omera would be along shortly. 

Din slid down the ladder, boots landing with a thump that caused Jax to jolt in surprise. Din had spent most of the flight to Sorgan in the cockpit, avoiding the inevitable conversation about the kid’s powers, and the bounty hunters and the mess that had been Din’s life before Jax came into the picture. 

Jax had respected his space, staying with the kid in the cargo bay. He had moved from Din’s cot the first night of their journey, collecting the blankets they had used on Ithor’s beach to make a small sleeping space for himself in the corner. 

He’d tried to get the kid back into his cot again, but the little one was stubborn, climbing out every time until Jax just gave up and let him curl up in his arms immediately. 

“Where are we?” Jax asked, standing from his seated position on the floor where the kid’s toys were spread around the place. 

“Sorgan,” Din said. “The kid and I stopped here a few months back. There’s an inhabited village a few kilometres away. We can stay there for a few weeks.” 

“Okay,” Jax said, grabbing his pack from the corner. “But we’re going to talk, alright? I need an explanation of what  _ he _ can do.” At that he pointed a finger at the kid who was innocently toddling around outside already. 

Din inclined his helmet and grabbed a cargo box to his left which contained the things they’d need for their stay.

The walk to the village was short, and as expected, Omera came to meet them when they breached the tree line. She smiled at the two of them kindly. 

“Hello stranger,” she said, and Din could hear the teasing tone in her voice. “I see you’ve brought friends.” 

He could hear Jax greet her from behind him, and the little one reach out his tiny hands from where he sat in Jax’s arms, fingers wiggling uncoordinatedly in an imitation of Jax’s wave. Omera giggled and waved back at him, her smile wider. 

“Omera, this is Jax. Jax this is Omera,” Din introduced, and Omera turned her kind smile to Jax once again. 

“It’s nice to meet you. We have your barn set up from last time,” she told him, and Din thanked her, allowing himself to be led inside the village. 

Jax gazed around in wonder and curiosity, watching as the villagers scooped great baskets of blue fish from the lakes dotted about the place. The village itself was simple, yet beautiful and he could see why Mando chose this place for the three of them to lay low. 

A group of children hurriedly came towards them and stopped in front of Jax. Or, more precisely in front of the kid. At Mando’s consent, Jax let the little one down, suddenly feeling anxious leaving him. But one look at the kid’s joyous smile and his worry was washed away. 

He’d be okay. 

The two of them were led to a hut, and Jax couldn’t stop flicking his head this way and that to take in all of his surroundings. He spotted what looked like a make up of a target practice area. A droid scooping fish from the water. Everything was so curious and  _ new.  _

He didn’t even realise he was being waited on until Mando called his name and he jogged to catch up. 

The hut itself was spacious, with a cot off to the side and a space in the middle for a bed or two. The woman, Omera, turned to them. She explained that they’d be bringing in two mattresses in a bit as they had to go to the cantina to ask for an extra set of bedding. 

Jax swiftly rounded on Mando as soon as Omera was out of earshot. “Right, explanation. Now.” He could hear the exasperation in Din’s sigh, and Jax smiles cheekily at him. 

Moff Voltimand Gideon was not having the best of days. For one thing, he  _ still  _ didn’t have the Asset. Those idiots called bounty hunters were able to get killed instead of taking back the Asset on Ithor. He cursed the Mandalorian over and over mentally, thinking up multiple ways to torture the man underneath the helmet.

It turned out, from the images his officers had been able to scrounge from the tracking beacon, the Mandalorian had acquired a new crew mate. But his face wasn’t discernible. Which was a shame. 

Another thing was that his underlings didn’t realise when he wanted to be undisturbed. They barged into his office with the minor of things. It was like they didn’t know the meaning of a supervisor. 

It wasn’t until one of the death troopers came through the door. 

“Yes, what is it DTLX-337?” Gideon asked tiredly, the bridge of his nose pinched between his fingers. The ‘trooper began to speak, but their scrambler was still active so Gideon couldn’t understand what he said. “Your scrambler, 337,” Gideon sighed. 

“Apologies sir,” 337 said, not sounding at all sorry. “The second stage of development is underway on the weapon, sir. They say it could be ready within a matter of weeks.” 

Gideon perked up in his seat, eyes alighting with excitement. Oh yes, he’d been waiting for this. “Indeed, and when do they say I will be able to see it?” 

“Not for a few days, sir,” the trooper answered, and Gideon’s smile turned sour with impatience and annoyance. 

“Of course. Have my officers sent up here. It’s time to form a plan,” he told the death trooper. “Oh, and 337?” he called when the trooper turned to leave. “Have the fleet set course for Nevarro.” 

“So, wait. Let me get this straight,” Jax said from where he sat on his new mattress. Mando stood above him, leaning against one of the pillars as the thief attempted to get his mind around what he’d been told. 

“You mean to tell me that you and the kid have been chased across the galaxy by bounty hunters and Imps because some dusty old Moff wants the little one because of his Space Magic Jedi powers?” he asked, staring at the warrior in surprise. “And you don’t think this dusty old Moff isn’t dead even though you shot down his TIE fighter and that he’s now chasing us?” 

The inclination of the warrior’s helmet was his answer, and Jax laughed, astonished. “Right. Fine. I seem to get into trouble by myself, but it seems that it’s found me this time.” 

“You can stay here,” Mando told him, and Jax’s head shot up in surprise. “You already have a bounty on your head. No use making it bigger by associating with me.” 

“Are you joking?! Please tell me you’re joking,” Jax said incredulously. “You think I’d leave you and the kid? No way. You’re stuck with me.” 

He could feel Mando’s eyes on his through the visor, and Jax’s ears turning pink. “So there,” he finished, nodding in finality and crossing his arms. 

Din wasn’t expecting Jax to stay. He had a bad feeling in his gut the thief would take his bag and leave, searching for the next ship off the planet. Even though the next one was the  _ Razor Crest.  _

Something warm bubbled in his stomach, and behind his helmet he smiled brightly. He cleared his throat and glanced outside to where the sun was sinking below the horizon, the two moons rising like guardians in the sky. 

“We should find the kid, and give him some food,” Din told Jax, and the two of them made their way out, where the people were beginning to light the lanterns, and the children were running around underfoot. 

They found the kid surrounded by other children, all of them crouching to get to his height and watching in morbid fascination as the little one swallowed a frog whole. 

Jax wrinkled his nose – quite cute—wait what? – at the sight, and Din sighed, knowing it would’ve ruined the kid’s appetite for the evening. He stepped forward, thanked the other children and picked the kid up by the scruff of his robes. 

He placed him on his hip, and he could feel the edge of a big ear grazing the skin of his neck as the kid turned his head to look at Jax. 

“Have fun?” came the quiet question from the thief and the kid cooed at him. “I bet you’re not going to eat any of the  _ delicious  _ food your dad made. No, you’re too full on frogs now. It’s all going to be for me. Yum!” 

And Din smiled, realising what Jax was doing. The other man laughed at the kid’s expression of betrayal, and when they got back to the hut, the little one protectively held onto his cup of soup, sending the most menacing glare at Jax he could manage. Which honestly, wasn’t that bad, just incredibly adorable. 

Before they climbed into bed, Din held out the cloth containing the beskar vambrace to Jax, who stared at it in confusion. “If you’re going to be travelling with us, I want you to wear this,” Din told him by way of explanation, and Jax took it quietly. He placed it next to his pack, and Din could see him lifting the corner of the blanket to take a peak. 

The next few days were the most relaxing Jax had had in a month. The most taxing thing that occurred was the work he did around the village to help out. It was heaven, and he spent a lot of time with Mando and the kid. 

The little one had found the joy that was playing Hide and Seek. He’d often tug on Jax’s or Mando’s shirt, cover his own eyes with his hands – although that didn’t really work – and look at them expectantly until they started counting. 

Mando was great at finding him, knowing where the little one was most likely to hide. Jax was horrible. It’d take him twenty minutes to find the kid when it would take the other five. That’s why he was the one to play with the kid usually. 

It was quite a warm sunny day, and both Mando and Jax were with the kid. He’d gotten tired of playing with the other children, and they’d wandered away to their lessons anyway. So he’d come to find Jax and Mando, tugging on both their shirt sleeves and gazing up at each of them imploringly.

They traipsed to the edge of the village, where they’d be out of the villagers way and the kid turned to them. The two men covered their eyes and began counting. Well, Jax started counting, Din was questioning how he – a feared Mandalorian – came to this. 

It was a bit harder to find the kid as this was a new area for the game to occur. But, once again it was Din who found him. 

He’d crouched till he was almost ground level, pulling back the leaves of a bush to gaze in. He almost missed the kid, but something must have gotten into his little nose because he sneezed – and Din damn near cooed it was so cute. 

He reached forward for the little one, who squealed when he was picked up and brought out of his hiding place. His little, muddy hands suddenly slapped against the sides of Din’s helmet, and he thought that if he hadn’t been wearing it, that would’ve been his cheeks. 

However, the kid’s hands made little muddy imprints, and Din turned to tell Jax he’d found him, internally grumbling about how long it would take to get the dirt off. There was a sudden guffaw, and Din looked up to see Jax laughing. 

His mouth was open wide in a grin, all teeth and gums and his shoulders bounced up and down with the sound. He had a nice laugh, Din mused feeling his cheeks growing warm under the helmet and the kid’s ears perking at the sound. 

Needless to say, it took quite a while to get the mud off the helmet  _ and  _ the kid. Although, that was because the little one kept on running out of the bath. Din had laughed from where he sat in the hut as Jax chased him, hands stretched out to catch the little menace and drag him back again. 

It had rained sometime in the night. It was evident in the lakes around the village that were near to overflowing with water and the dampness of the ground beneath their feet. 

It turned the pathways slippery, and Din could immediately see the look of mischief in Jax’s brown eyes as he led the kid outside. Din followed behind to keep an eye on the two. 

He stood a few metres away from them, watching as Jax stomped his booted foot in a muddy puddle, spraying his trousers with muck. He laughed joyously when the kid tried to copy him, only making the tiniest of sploshes.

Jax crouched to his eye level, watching with a soft smile as the kid giggled and patted his hands in the mud. 

He flicked a small bit of mud at the little one, watching as it landed on his ear. The kid’s head whipped around to him, and he chirped at him almost indignantly, kicking mud at him again. Jax retaliated quickly, this time the mud landing on the child’s nose. He could hear Mando chuckling quietly behind him. 

The kid’s brow suddenly furrowed in an angry expression and his hands came up, pushing at air. Jax felt  _ something  _ barrel into his chest that sent him over backwards. Right into a lake. 

He came up gasping for air, soaked completely and shivering. He stared at the kid in astonishment for a few seconds, before laughing so hard his sides hurt. The kid looked so surprised at what he had done, staring at his hands in such amazement it looked comical. 

Din wandered over to help him up, grasping the man’s hand with his own gloved one and pulling him out before grabbing the kid and tucking him in the crook of his elbow. 

He spent most of the journey back to the hut telling him off, but he knew the kid wasn’t really listening. 

Jax headed straight for the pack when they got in, riffling through it to grab a spare shirt. 

Din had never been more grateful for the helmet than he was when Jax tugged off his shirt without warning, the metal hiding his furious blush as he got a full view of Jax’s muscled shoulders and arms, decorated with a splattering of freckles and the toned abdomen with a light small scar on his hip bone. 

Din could hear his breath hitch when Jax’s brown eyes fell on him, eyebrows in question. 

Din startled and grabbed the kid from where he was crawling on the floor, gave a weak excuse to leave and stormed out muttering curses in Mando’a. 

“You said you  _ had  _ to become a thief,” Din suddenly said one calm evening. The two of them sat on the porch of their hut, watching the kid toddle around before dinner. “Why?” 

He heard Jax sigh beside him, and he turned his head to look at him, the setting sun glancing off the beskar. Jax looked…sad. As if this were the first time he’d had to tell this to anyone. And to Din’s knowing, it might be. 

“I told you about my parents. How they…” Jax swallowed hard before continuing, his eyes already filling with tears which he held back. He could remember so clearly the footage of his home planet blowing up on the news. How there was nothing left when the deed was done. How lost he had felt. 

“I found out I had to disappear after it happened. My parents weren’t exactly patriotic towards the Empire, and they weren’t quiet either. So the son of a pair of traitors out all on his own would’ve been easy pickings for a low ranking officer wanting to climb the ranks or a greedy bounty hunter. Although, there was no bounty on my head back then.

“I kind of had to find another way to live that wasn’t within the public eye. Lived on the streets for a bit, then learnt the only way to get what I needed was by stealing. I suppose you know the rest,” Jax said, and Din guessed he did.

“Had to change my name after it happened. Thought it was better than using my real one and risking capture.” 

There was silence for a few moments where Jax’s history laid out clearly in Din’s mind. They weren’t that dissimilar now that he thought about it, apart from the fact that Din was given a home after his parents died. Jax had to figure out how to make one.

Jax cleared his throat before turning to Din. “What about you? Were you always a Mandalorian or did you join a bit later? There are rumours of that happening.” 

Underneath the helmet, Din rolled the words in his mouth, images of his parents flashing behind his eyes every time he blinked. He’d never told anyone outside of the Covert what happened when he was a child. “My parents were killed by Separatist droids during the wars. The Mandalorians found me, took me in,” he explained shortly, not really wanting to get into details. 

“That’s why you can’t stand droids,” Jax finished, understanding lathering his voice, and he fell quiet again, sensing the discomfort in the air. The little one suddenly padded up to them, sensing the upset in the atmosphere. 

He toddled over to Din, tugging on the hem of his trouser and then lifting his arms up in the universal sign of ‘up’. The kid was easily lifted onto his lap, and he immediately settled against his chest. The three of them sat in comfortable silence until Jax got up from his chair to check on dinner. 

Din followed him a few moments later, willing to help in making dinner. They’d fallen into a comfortable routine over the last few weeks, but Din could see how antsy Jax was getting and Din was feeling the same. It was too calm, too quiet and both men had grown up in an environment that was always on the move. 

Din broached the subject of moving on the next day at breakfast, and although he could see Jax’s reluctance due to the kid, he could see the relief in his dark brown eyes. 

They took off from Sorgan a week later, and Din could feel himself relax in the pilot’s seat as they entered hyper-space. 

“Progress report?” 

“Weapon at 63%, sir.” 

“Captain, the point of this is to have it ready  _ before  _ they can move again. I want it done by the end of the cycle, understood?” 

“Sir, yes sir.” 

Jax didn’t know when they started, but it was obvious that his feelings for the warrior were very...potent. It could’ve been when he had been able to see the vulnerable side of Mando during their stay on Sorgon. Or, it probably was the first time he’d seen him, armour gleaming in the sun on that dust bowl of a planet, protective arm around the kid. 

That had been something that drew him to Mando; his effortless protectiveness to those he called family. It was obvious they were few in number, but Jax watched as the warrior treated the kid with such kindness and parental demeanor. 

Jax didn’t know much about Mandalorian culture, and the bits he had been able to learn about, and the parts that he picked up from Mando fascinated him. He’d heard Mando quietly sing the little one a lullaby, gently rocking him in his arms. Jax had been privileged and humbled to be able to experience it, because it was the most beautiful thing he’d ever heard. 

Except, he didn’t dare tell the warrior that, nervous of the reaction he would get, if any at all. And, with a heavy heart, he shoved his feelings deep into his chest, knowing they might never see the light of day.

Din knew his feelings were explosive. They were liable to get someone hurt, and he was comfortable hiding them behind the silver barrier that was his helmet. 

So, he’d been surprised when the kid had been able to cause a crack in his walls, breaking open a little hole for himself in Din’s heart so effortlessly it felt like a punch to the chest. He loved the little one fiercely, and had grinned so wide it hurt when his clan had been made official. 

He suddenly realised he was beginning to feel the same about Jax. 

  
  


The comm from Karga meant another trip to Nevarro to pick up the puck, beacon and drop the kid off with the Covert. This one was a bit too dangerous for the little one, even if he stayed in his quarters with the door shut tight. 

He’d asked whether Jax would like to come and hand the kid over to Paz, but the thief shook his head. Din was surprised as he had asked countless questions about his clan, and the Covert and anything he could think of about Mandalorian culture. 

So, to see him decline, it set alarm bells off in Din’s head. And when he tried to niggle it out of the man later on, when it was just the two of them and the wide open space he got a vague reply that didn’t sound like Jax at all. 

But the subject was dropped, and the course was set for Bespin, much to the reluctance of Jax. Din didn’t like it either, knowing that bringing Jax any closer to the planet would elicit his arrest, and possible carbon freezing. But a job was a job, and he’d planned to leave Jax minding the ship. 

The job was meant to be a simple one. Get in, get the guy, get out. He was meant to be one of Karga’s best hunters, but he’d gotten into a bit of a pickle over the sabacc table. Which meant a cold night in a cell and a possible trip over the side of the city.

It was easy getting in, as Din expected. However, when he got to the cell block – keeping low to the ground to stay out of sight – he discovered that he was too late. The hunter had been dealt with, either within a carbon compartment or as a pancake on the planet's ground below and the cell was completely empty. 

He cursed quietly in Mando’a and swung around to get out again, dodging past a pair of guards who strolled by his hiding spot. 

It wasn’t as easy getting out, the alarms flashing red and the klaxon wailing loudly when he was just next to the door out of the cell block. They’d spotted him on the cameras. Din scrambled for the exit when the first blaster shots pinged off his armour, sending him stumbling forward. 

He quickly activated the HUD in his helmet, alerting Jax to get the engines going because he was coming in hot once he righted himself. 

He had to run for it, dodging around corners and dashing through corridors before he was able to spot the  _ Razor Crest  _ in the distance, sitting on the landing pad with its engines hot. He sprinted and heard the roar of the ship’s engines and the ramp dropped open. 

Jax stood at the top, blaster held firmly in his hands as he gave Din cover fire, brown hair whipping around his face in the wind. He shouted at him over the noise to take control of the ship as he set off another few shots at the guards who had grown in number and Din climbed up the ladder quickly. 

They jetted away fast, leaving Bespin behind. Din didn’t relax until they entered hyper-space once more, knuckles white as he clutched the steering stick. He thumped his hands against his lap in anger at the failed job when the blue of hyper-space enveloped the ship, cursing in Mando’a again.

Setting the ship onto autopilot, he made his way back down to the cargo bay. He couldn’t see Jax. At least not immediately, and his anxiety suddenly spiked, but he spotted his mop of unruly brown hair next to the door. 

He was slumped on the floor, breathing shallow and face a sickly grey. Din dashed over, crouching next to the thief who gave him a weak smile. 

Din cast his eyes over him, looking for the obvious injury, and finding it on his right leg. Jax’s gloved hands were pressing against his right thigh, the black trousers he was wearing slick with blood and his hands slippery with the liquid. One that was meant to be  _ in  _ his body. 

A puddle was already beginning to spread on the floor, bright red against grey, and Din tugged the first aid kit over to him, throwing it open and pulling out reams of gauze, fingers fumbling as he realised they were shaking. 

He heard Jax whimper as he applied pressure to the wound, and Din’s breathing hitched in worry, glancing up at the thief.

“What happened?” he asked, and he himself could hear the anxiety in his tone. Sweat beaded on Jax’s forehead as it scrunched in pain and Din could see his jaw clenching. 

“Lucky shot,” Jax managed, taking deep breaths in and out of his mouth. “Thought they were as bad as ‘troopers. Obviously, I was wrong,” he laughed, and Din frowned at him through his helmet. 

“We need to get you back to, Nevarro. Back to the kid,” Din told him, pressing a bacta patch on the deep wound on Jax’s leg, knowing it wouldn’t do much. Jax hissed hard at the renewed pain and tilted his head back to hit the wall behind him. 

“Can’t really…depend…on him to fix everything,” he said quietly. 

“This we can,” Din replied and Jax laughed morbidly. 

Din couldn’t move him, not without causing more damage to a wound that was already bad, but it was obvious the thief was becoming uncomfortable where he was seated. He eased his cape off gently, keeping his left hand firmly pressed against the still bleeding wound. It was slowing now, but not enough for it to not cause worry. 

He gently, ever so gently leaned Jax forward from the wall, shuffling behind him. He pressed his back against the cold durasteel, placing his legs wide so that Jax was bracketed by his thighs, and pulled Jax back to lean against his chest. 

He draped the cape over the thief, tucking in the sides to keep the heat in. He felt Jax shift underneath him. “What’re you doin’?” he asked, but Din just tucked his head under his chin. 

“Rest,  _ di’kut _ ,” he told him. He could feel his body become hyper-sensitive to every part that was pressed against the thief. The only person he had been this close to in months was the kid. But he found he didn’t mind. 

He felt a pinch on his trouser leg and glanced down to see Jax’s hand clenched around the fabric. His knuckles were turning white and his breathing ragged as he rode out what seemed to be another wave of pain. 

Din wasn’t thinking when he tugged off his glove, throwing it off to the side before threading his fingers around Jax’s. He turned the thief’s hand palm up so that he could clench Din’s and he heard Jax’s breathing hitch in surprise. 

Din’s skin tingled with the contact, and he watched as Jax’s long fingers relaxed, his shoulders slumping and breath easing as the pain seemed to dull. 

Din stared, fascinated at how easily his hand fitted into Jax’s, like a puzzle piece he never knew was missing. It was quiet in the ship, the only sound the rumble of the engines around them. They didn’t talk, and Din titled his head to the side to press against Jax’s left temple in an informal version of the Keldabe kiss. 

“Jackson,” came the thief’s voice suddenly, quietly and slightly raspy. Din didn’t move his head but hummed in question. “That’s m’name,” Jax continued. “Jackson Tournier.” 

The revelation hung in the air between them, and Din sat there for a few moments, rolling the name over in his head. He took a big breath, mouth forming his own. “Din,” he said, almost hesitant because he knew how much power names had. 

Jax gave him an almost sleepy smile from where his head was leaning back against his shoulder. “Nice to meet you, Din,” he said, and it sent shivers up the man’s body. “What’s  _ di’kut  _ mean?” 

“It’s Mando’a,” Din replied, checking their trajectory through the HUD in his helmet. 

“Meaning…?” Jax asked, turning his brown eyes to almost meet Din’s through the visor. 

“Idiot,” came the reply, and Jax hit him weakly on the arm, giving a huff in laughter. 

He contacted Paz as soon as they entered Nevarro’s atmosphere, requesting a stretcher and the kid when they got to the Covert. He felt Jax shift again when they landed, and Din gently picked him up, wary of his leg as he tucked his arms behind his shoulders and his knees. 

It was raining on Nevarro again, but Din didn’t want to go any faster than a stride in fear of aggravating Jax’s leg. The catacombs under the city were a godsend, and he spotted the bigger Mandalorian immediately. 

He told Paz in Mando’a to lead the way to the infirmary, spotting the kid held in the crook of his elbow. The little one squirmed and fussed until he could peak his head over a blue pauldron, big brown eyes locked on Jax’s form. He gave a distressed sound, and Jax wiggled the fingers on his right hand in comfort and greeting. 

They gained many strange and suspicious looks on the way, some Mandalorians even stepping further into their path than necessary to get a look at the  _ aruetii.  _ Din almost growled when the word was spat at them, but Jax didn’t ask what it meant. It was already obvious by the tone. 

The medic, a short male wearing green armour, took Jax from Din’s arms and laid him down on a bed. Immediately the kid squirmed to be let down and crawled over to where the wound was. The medic looked like he was about to protest, but Din held up his hand for silence as the little one held out his own. 

His little face scrunched in concentration, eyes falling shut and hand beginning to shake. Jax watched with his head tilted up as the wound slowly closed, and the bleeding ceased. It wouldn’t have taken any more than a minute or so, but it felt like seconds as the kid flopped over tiredly when the deed was done. 

Din gathered him in his arms, running his fingers from his forehead and down his nose, over and over until the little one yawned widely and opened his eyes again. “You’re getting better  _ ad’ika, _ ” he told him, and pressed his helmet against the kid’s forehead. “Thank you,” he said quietly. 

“Is he…?” Paz suddenly asked, coming up to Din’s side and gesturing to where Jax was sitting up slowly and testing out his leg under the medic’s watchful eye. 

“Yeah, that’s Jax,” he told him, and Paz turned to look at the man again, his helmet tilting up and then down to look. 

“He’s taller than I expected,” Paz said, and Din snorted in quiet laughter. “I’m not sure how long you’re going to last without having to talk to the Armourer.” 

“I doubt we have very long, people spotted us on the way here,” Din said, cradling the kid close to him. 

“What’re you going to tell her?” Paz asked. “The beskar he gave you will be assumed as a proposal, or have you not told him that?” 

“I…haven’t told him that,” Din admitted, and he could see Paz’s shoulders shaking in quiet laughter. “I didn’t see the problem in  _ not  _ telling him as I thought he wouldn’t ever come here.” 

“And yet here we are,” Paz said, and the two fell into a comfortable silence for a few moments. “If you need time, I can get here to meet with you tomorrow, and you have time then with your  _ Cyare. _ ” 

Din almost growled at him, but he could hear the sarcasm and amusement in his tone. 

“Thank you, it’s nice to see my suffering is such entertainment for you,” Din said, and Paz chuckled quietly. They watched quietly as the medic finished the final check up and let them go. 

Jax resembled a curious puppy as Paz broke away from them, leaving the two of them alone. He gazed at anything and everything as they made their way towards one of the spare rooms set aside for visitors. 

“How long are we staying here?” he asked, eyes bright as he smiled at Din and the warrior’s stomach flip-flopped, his cheeks growing red. 

“Only for a few weeks,” he said, and Jax pouted slightly. 

They were still getting weird looks, but Jax didn’t seem all that bothered by them, smiling at anyone who passed. He took the kid from Din when they reached the door to the room, cradling him in his arms as it was opened. 

They both stalled for a moment, gazing around the room that was to be theirs. A single bed stood in the middle, a mattress and a pile of blankets in the corner and a cot next to the window. 

They could see the night sky from it, and Jax placed the little one in his cot to disgruntled whining. “Ah, no you little menace. You’re already tired as it is and healing me didn’t help. You need rest,” Jax told him, running his finger gently down his nose and, for once, the kid quietly curled up and slept, his big ears twitching slightly. 

“I’ll take the mattress,” Jax said, and Din couldn’t protest as the thief pulled out the blankets and arranged them in a comfortable position. 

Din watched as Jax curled up under them, and he turned his back, beginning to unlatch his armour slowly and carefully. Leaving his helmet on, he turned to notice Jax shivering. Din suddenly realised how cold it was in the Covert and gave a quiet sigh. 

“Jax,” he called to him, and he could see the thief’s shoulders stiffen under the blanket. “You’ll get sick like that.” And Din patted the space beside him in the bed, watching as Jax rolled over and considered it for a few moments. 

The man shrugged and stood with the blanket around his shoulders before climbing under the covers. He was slightly chilled, and he seemed to keep his distance as he rolled onto his side once again, determined to keep at least a foot of space between them. 

Din sighed, and without thinking pulled Jax closer to him, placing his arm over his waist and threading their legs together. He could feel Jax tensing beside him before relaxing, and Din could feel his cheeks grow red underneath the helmet. This was the most human contact he’d had in weeks, bar holding Jax while he almost bled out in the cargo hold, and it seemed as if Jax was able to bowel right through his walls. 

It didn’t take long for the kid to join them, stubbornly climbing up the bed towards them. He buried himself between the two of them, little claws clinging to Jax’s shirt and big ears tickling Din’s neck. 

“ _ Ad’ika, _ ” Din grumbled in exasperation, and Jax laughed quietly. 

“You’re speaking more…Mando’a, is it?” Jax observed. “It’s a gorgeous language,” he said, and Din felt a bubble of pride grow in his chest. Jax was starting to sound sleepy again and Din was surprised he hadn’t dropped off yet. “I’d love to learn it.” 

Din startled at that, something warm erupting in his stomach and he clutched Jax closer to him, and the kid snuggled into Jax’s back. They slept peacefully. 

Lunch the next day was interesting and almost eye opening. The three of them had spent most of the morning giving the little one a bath, which turned out to be quite the adventure and ended with all three of them soaked in water and the kid giggling up a storm. 

Jax then spent the rest of the morning sitting on the floor with the kid, playing with the toys they’d brought from the  _ Razor Crest  _ whilst Din slowly and meticulously polished his armour, watching the two of them as he did so. 

The kid had been incredibly vocal all morning, babbling at Jax who replied as if it was a real conversation. The kid suddenly stopped however, turning his big brown eyes to Din and raising one of his little hands to point at him. 

“Di-da,” he said, little mouth forming the words. Din’s head shot up in surprise, staring at the little one in astonishment as the kid said it again, smiling wide and bright at him. 

“Did he just…?” Jax asked, eyes wide in astonishment. 

“Yeah,” Din breathed, staring at their little charge as he repeated the name he’d given Din. He almost felt his eyes tear up. 

However, it seemed the little one wasn’t finished yet and he swung his gaze to Jax, placing his little hand on his chest. He proceeded to make a sound that greatly resembled the raspberry, finishing it off with a loud “Da!” 

Jax stared down at the little one with wide eyes as the kid tried to make his name with his mouth, and he started to laugh, loudly and brightly, head tilted back as his hands came up to hold his sides. 

Din chuckled again as the kid bounced, delighted that he was able to make his two dad’s laugh. He tried again, this time saying their names one after the other, although Jax’s sounded a bit more mutilated than Din’s but he didn’t care.

Jax bundled the little one in his arms, pressing a kiss to the soft peach fuzz on the top of his head. “Love you too, kid,” he murmured and passed him on to Din who pressed his helmet against the kid’s forehead as he cooed in joy. 

“ _ Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum, ad’ika _ ,” he said to him quietly, eyes tearing up slightly underneath his helmet. 

The two of them made their way to the dining hall afterwards, Jax slyly wiping his eyes with his sleeves as they entered. He felt incredibly honoured to be considered anything to the kid and hearing him try to say his name had been the best thing he’d heard in a while – well, except for Din’s name for the first time. That had been enough to send his stomach into a gymnastics routine, even with a bleeding leg. 

The dining hall was filled with multiple armours and helmets, and Jax felt slightly exposed being the only one without one, not to mention the staring. He blushed, ducked his head and followed Din to grab some food. 

A few minutes after the three of them had settled, Paz joined them, sitting next to Din heavily and clapping his hand to his shoulder in greeting. 

“The Armourer wants to see you after lunch,” he told them, and Din glanced to Jax, noting the nervousness that was obvious in his bottom lip caught between his teeth, and his furrowed brow. 

“Hey,” Din called to him quietly, garnering a glance up as Jax’s brown eyes met his own. “We’ll be fine.” Jax’s shoulders grew lax again, and Din noticed Paz glancing between the two of them. 

As Jax lifted his spoon to his mouth, Din suddenly realised what he was about to eat. He protested, somewhat loudly and Jax gazed at him curiously. 

“What?” he asked, genuinely confused as Paz held his sides in laughter. 

“You don’t want to eat that,” Din told him, glancing at Jax's spoon, and half filled bowl. He’d have to have a chat with him about bigger portions, the thief was skinny as it was. 

“And why not?” Jax asked, looking at the warrior in challenge. The kid had taken notice at this point, looking up from his own food to gaze between the two, cooing in confusion. Paz was halfway to falling off his seat. 

“It’s…too hot,” Din told him. “There’s a reason that stew isn’t usually served outside of Mandalorian culture.” Din could smell the spice across the table and through the filter in his helmet. He was surprised Jax’s eyes weren’t tearing up already. 

“I mean it’s just spice, it can’t hurt me,” Jax said defiantly, and shoved the spoonful into his mouth. A silence descended upon their table as the two Mandalorians watched the thief chew and swallow his spoonful, brown eyes lighting up in surprise and going for another bite.

“I don’t know what your problems are, but this is great,” he told them, and Din watched in utter astonishment as he almost licked the bowl clean. Paz ended up on the floor, roaring with laughter. The kid was giggling too. 

“How?” Din asked and watched as the thief shrugged. The way he took the heat of the dish with no trouble was doing  _ things  _ to Din, and his cheeks grew red as Jax sucked the remainder of the sauce from his fingers. 

“I like spice. I needed to learn how to make things taste nice when I was…you know,” he gestured vaguely, and Din got the hint. “The only way to do that is with spices.” 

“I may have underestimated you, Jax,” Paz suddenly said, sitting back on the bench and Din could feel the respect radiating from him. “But  _ thank you _ for that. I haven’t laughed like that in a long time.” 

Jax’s cheeks turned pink, and Din’s stomach flip-flopped again. It must’ve been something in the stew. 

They finished lunch in comfortable silence, and they split off from Paz again. He was headed to do some checks on his own ship while the other three were headed to the Armourer. 

Din, in a spur of the moment, grabbed Jax's arm. He swung him around to face him, his brows furrowed in confusion. “There’s something I need to tell you before we go in there,” he said, nodding towards the corridor that led to the furnace and the Armourer. 

“Okay…?” Jax said, raising his eyebrow in curiosity. He’d never seen Din this serious, and he turned to face him easily. 

“The beskar you gave me, the one you stole?” he asked, and Jax nodded in affirmation. He remembered that clearly, hell he was still wearing a piece on his arm. “Well,” and Din paused for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, “in Mandalorian culture, giving someone beskar has a really special meaning.” 

Jax tilted his head to the side in confusion, and the kid cooed in his arms. He had no idea where this was going. 

“Well…in giving me the beskar, you were inadvertently proposing. To me,” Din said, and he could feel the heat growing in his cheeks, but he didn’t dare look up at Jax, instead keeping his gaze glued firmly to his feet. 

He suddenly heard a snort, and he looked up to see the thief nearly bent backwards, tears rolling down his face in laughter. Jax’s laugh was the best one Din had ever heard, and he chuckled along with him. 

“Din, you’re acting as if that’s the biggest slight ever done to me,” Jax said, smiling at him. “Is that why Paz called me ‘ _ cyare _ ’? Does it have a romantic meaning?” 

“It means essentially beloved, or loved one in Mando’a,” Din explained, feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. “But, it doesn’t have to mean anything. We can forget that that was ever mentioned.” 

Jax suddenly sobered, staring at Din as if he’d been asked to rip his own heart out. “And what if I don’t want that?” he asked quietly, and Din was about to open his mouth to answer when the door to the armoury burst open. 

They were swept inside by the gold armoured female, and made to sit as she stared at both of them, intently. “I see your clan has grown, Djarin,” she said, and he spotted Jax’s mouth forming out the syllables of his last name out of the corner of his eye. 

“Yes. This is Jax, the thief I told you about last I was here,” he said, and Jax greeted her respectfully. 

“You’re the one with the beskar, correct? I’d recognise my workmanship anywhere,” she said, gesturing to the vambrace strapped to his arm. 

“Yes, and it has aided me many a time, ma’am,” he replied and the Armourer chuckled. 

“It’s been a while since anyone called me that,” she said. “You’ve found yourself quite the gentleman, Djarin.” And Jax blushed hard. 

“So. When do you intend to hold the wedding?” she asked, ignoring the spluttering of both men as she rounded the hearth to begin preparing another piece of beskar. “It’s obvious the two of you are suited for each other. There’s really no need to hold it any longer.” 

The Armourer was teasing now to get a rise out of one or the both of them, Din could hear it in her voice, and it was working, slightly. 

The kid seemed to be enjoying it as much as she was, cooing from where he sat tucked in Jax’s arm. But, Din calmed himself by taking large deep breaths, gaze flickering to Jax’s face which was as red as desert sand on Tatooine. 

He told her all he could remember, from his meeting Jax and destroying his droid companion, to the job a few days ago. Jax chipped in if he forgot any details, adding in commentary where he thought necessary. 

“Hm. It would seem Gideon is still on your trail,” the Armourer said, glancing from Din to the child and back. “Are you sure your safety is upheld here?” 

“No,” Din replied, and he sensed Jax’s head whipping towards him in fright. “But there was no place we could go. We won’t stay long, and any trouble will be dealt with.” 

She nodded her head, and Din could feel her hard stare through both helmets, and swiftly excused them from the room. 

“Sir?” came the voice of an underling, and Gideon sighed in annoyance. 

“Yes, captain?” he replied, pinching his nose between his fingers.

“Report from the lab, sir.” Gideon glanced up in surprise, his mouth stretching in a wide smile. 

“And? Out with it!” The underling jumped in surprise, stammering for a few seconds. 

“Development on the weapon has been fully completed, sir. We’re ready for a test run,” he said. 

“There will be no need,” Gideon told him, standing and making his way to the only window in his office which looked out to the great expanse of space. 

“Sir?” 

“Set a course for Nevarro. I want us there as soon as possible.” 

“You sure about this?” Jax asked Paz as they both shucked off their boots. “I don’t want to hurt you.” He could hear Din snorting in laughter from where he stood at the edge of the training mat, the little one held in his arms. 

“The only thing you’ll be hurting is your hands,” Paz told him, unclasping parts of his armour and laying them down carefully. 

“Fair point,” Jax admitted, and sank into a low stance with his hands in front of his face. He had asked Paz to train with him that morning over breakfast as he was feeling out of shape and sluggish. The large warrior was quick to agree, and Jax had a feeling it was to judge his own skill. 

There was to be no weapons involved, and Jax had grumpily left his knives with Din, feeling almost naked without them. Paz looked menacing, standing a head taller than him. But, Jax knew how to use his size to his advantage, and how to play dirty. 

Paz seemed surprised at his agility, adapting to his swiftness by cutting him off, his size perfect for reach. They broke away from each other after a good few hits. 

Jax was already breathing heavily and sweat was already dripping from his brow. He hadn’t had to fight someone without his knives often, but he was finding the experience exciting. 

They both traded a few more blows until Jax ended up pinned beneath Paz, unable to toss him off due to his size. 

“You done?” Paz asked, his own breathing heavy, and Jax nodded, pushing at the hands holding down his wrists to be let up. 

“You surprised me  _ chakaar.  _ I didn’t expect you to be so...scrappy,” Paz said, and Jax raised his brow at the term. 

Jax had done enough scrutiny on his datapad - which, yes fine he’d stolen - to know that Paz had just insulted him. It was meant to be the word for thief, but it was used as a term of abuse. But, Paz’s tone seemed to make it sound like a term of endearment, and when Jax glanced around the large Mandalorian he didn’t see Din about to stalk over to maim the guy. So he let it go. 

“Djarin!” came a loud shout from outside their room, and Din glanced up from where he had been playing with the kid. Jax furrowed his brow at him as a very familiar green cladded armour burst through the door. 

“Anthor,” Din said, “the word ‘knocking’ mean anything to you?” 

Jax snorted loudly, for it was rare for Din to use sarcasm. 

The other warrior was breathing heavily, as if he had run from the other side of the Covert. “Apologies,” he said, not sounding sorry at all, “but your  _ di’kut _ stole my best scalpel. And I know it was him because it was there before he came in asking for something and gone after he’d left.” 

Din sighed heavily, turning his gaze towards Jax and giving him a Look. The thief chuckled nervously. “I was gonna give it back. I just wanted to...look at it?” Jax sounded terribly sure about his conviction. 

Din didn’t move from where he was pinning the other man with his stare until the thief grumbled, pulling his pack from beside the mattress and handing the scalpel to Anthor like a petulant child. 

It had become a thing, the two of them sleeping in the same mattress. They’d done it for the weeks they’d been staying in the Covert, and the kid had taken to joining them when he’d thought the two of them were asleep. But Din watched every night through his helmet as the little one ‘sneaked’ up the blanket to settle between them. 

Jax blamed it on how cold their room became during the night, but Din knew he felt as comfortable as he did, curled up with the kid between them. Din had become used to tracing his finger across the galaxy of freckles across Jax’s shoulders as he slept, always making sure he was out cold. 

Now, curled around the man with his knees tucked under his, Din realised how comfortable he was like this. How content Jax made him feel as a whole. He tightened the arm wrapped around the thief’s waist, feeling him shift and then settle once again. 

He hadn’t noticed how far he had fallen until that moment. 

Another thing Din observed, was that Jax asked the most serious questions after a nightmare, or when he couldn’t sleep. There would still be that sense of his never ending curiosity, but it would be dimmed for the absorption of information. 

Din was very used to nightmares. Snapping upright in bed with a loud gasp was expected at least once every two weeks. And Jax would be there with his sleep addled voice and guiding hand, their positions swapping under the covers until the warrior slept again within Jax’s arms. 

Jax wasn’t prone to nightmares, or he was but Din wasn’t usually awake to witness the fall out. But sometimes he’d be just on the cusp of sleep, eyelids drooping heavily and Jax would take in a big intake of air, his brown eyes opening quickly and staring blankly at the ceiling. 

It was here that he’d breath deeply to get his heart rate under control, and Din would either hum a simple melody or Jax would ask him a question. Tonight it seemed like Jax’s curiosity got the best of him. 

“Can you tell me about The Creed?” he asked, his head tucked under Din’s chin, mouth grazing his collarbone as he spoke. “Anthor mentioned it this morning as if it were very important.” 

“The Creed is what forms our people. It’s our way of life. It affects your decisions in life, and every foundling when they come of age swear into it with the Code,” Din began after a moment of silence. He remembered it from when he had been a foundling, with no parents and only the Creed to guide him - give him purpose. 

“It ties into the six tenets, or  _ Resol’nare  _ as they’re called in Mando’a,” he continued, and Jax didn’t say anything, his fingers outlining shapes on the bed sheets. “We wear our armour, we speak the language, we defend our family and ourselves, we contribute to the welfare of our clan, we raise our children in Mandalorian ways and answer the call when Mandalore summons us.” 

“Do you call it ‘The Way’ for short?” came the question, and Din felt Jax tilting his head to get a look at him, his brown curls tickling his chin. 

“It’s part of the Creed, we say it to each other as a promise almost,” Din explained. 

“What is the Creed?” Jax asked. 

The words were incredibly familiar as Din said it to Jax in Mando’a, translating it for him to understand. 

“Sounds powerful,” Jax murmured, eyes drooping sleepily and breath evening out finally as Din sighed quietly. 

“Go to sleep,  _ dik’ut, _ ” he told him, cradling both him and the kid closer to him. 

“ETA twelves hours, sir.” 

“Excellent.” 

“Ugh, I miss our bed already,” Jax groaned, lifting the kid into the air above him. He lay horizontal on the floor of the cockpit, behind Din’s seat and had done nothing but complain ever since they took off from the Covert. 

The warrior’s cheeks glowed with heat slightly at the notion of their bed. They’d become closer over the few weeks they’d spent with the Covert, and Din could no longer, in good conscience, deny his feelings for the thief. But he didn’t know what to do with them. 

“We’ll be back in time for food later. I just have to do this for Karga,” he explained, and Jax cheered loudly, tossing the kid into the air much to Din’s anxiety and the child’s delight. 

It was going to be that short, just a pick up for Karga and back to the Covert. It was a delivery of supplies to keep them going for the next few weeks, as the resources where the Covert was hidden were sparse and difficult to find. 

They swapped positions halfway through, Din taking a break from flying by sitting in Jax’s seat with the little one in his lap. He traced his fingers over the kid’s forehead, ears and down his nose, watching his big eyes droop, and his little hands come up to clutch the edge of his chestplate. 

The flight and pickup was easy, and Karga had been willing to help pile the cargo boxes into the ship. They received the message halfway through the journey, the signal slightly crackling but clear enough for Paz’s image to pop up. 

“Din,” he said, pausing before continuing. “It’s Gideon, he’s back.” Paz seemed to glance behind him, exposing the jetpack ready and waiting on his shoulders. 

“He’s brought something I never thought we’d see again. You  _ must  _ get back to Nevarro, we need you.” Din heard Jax's quick and nervous intake of breath, and Din’s shoulders tensed. 

“We’ll be there as soon as we can,” Din told him, already setting a course for the Covert, Jax sitting next to him with the kid clutched in his lap. 

They landed on a rocky plain a few clicks from the entrance into the main city, and Din could see the red lights of blaster shots already. He darted down the ladder into the cargo hold, Jax following right behind him. 

The thief already knew the drill, placing the kid safely into his cot and shutting the beskar door tight. Din flung open the door to the weapon cabinet, taking out his rifle, explosive charges and one other blaster before turning to Jax and handing him one as well. 

“We need to bring out the big guns,” Din murmured to himself before wandering over to a panel within the wall, kicking it open to reveal the jetpack within.

“You had a  _ jetpack  _ this whole time and you never told me?!” Jax cried, staring at it in awe. “When we’re done here, I’m trying it out and you can’t stop me.” 

Din chuckled incredulously, watching his thief strap the blaster to his belt, unsheathing his knives from his sleeves and boots, pulling on his gloves again. 

The ramp to the  _ Razor Crest  _ shut tight, and Din and Jax reluctantly turned away. It didn’t take them long to get in the view of the city, and Din spotted something that made his heart practically stop in his chest. 

It stood taller than the buildings surrounding it, looking vaguely like an AT-ST but with strange extensions either side of it. Jax glanced at him in confusion, taking in the round piece of tech at the bottom in slight fear. 

“What is that?” Jax questioned, brown eyes taking in the sheer size of the transport. 

“An Arc Pulse Generator,” Din whispered in terrified awe, already fearing for the lives of the Covert. The weapons plans were thought to have been destroyed, but to see it in front of them, it set Din’s temper alight, thinking of the many Mandaloirans that had fallen to the contraption, allowing many Imps to walk free unharmed. 

“Wait,” he said suddenly, grabbing Jax’s arm before they breached the entrance into the main city. “We need to split up. You take the back alleys, find any of the Covert you can and lead them to the ship. I’ll take them from the front, see if I can cut that thing off.” 

“No problem. You stay safe,” Jax replied, already pulling up his hood. He turned back to the warrior when he felt his worried gaze on the back of his head and he smirked at him. “Hey, they won’t see me coming.” And with a flick of his wrists his blades were unsheathed and he disappeared into the darkness of the back alleys. 

It was easy to find the Covert’s fighters. Shapes and shadows flitted across the ground; Mandos wearing jetpacks and Jax watched as they took down ‘troopers with ease. He’d never get tired of watching them fight, and he felt a  _ need  _ to join them. But he pressed on. 

Din took to the skies for the second time in his life, the wind whipping past his helmet and making no difference to his vision. Anthor nodded to him from where he floated beside him, and he could hear the sounds of Paz’s heavy artillery, but the Generator continued to stomp towards them. 

“We mustn't let it fire,” he told the medic, gesturing towards the plodding machinery with his head as he shot down an errant trooper who was getting too close to one of the Covert. 

“Yeah, no shit,” Anthor replied and Din laughed in surprise at the medic’s sudden use of crass language. “The Armourer is down there too. She led the foundlings deeper into the caves so they will be safe.” 

“Good,” Din replied with a relieved noise. 

The weapon suddenly began to charge, and a shout went out from the gathering of warriors. Din ducked behind a building quickly, and his ears popped at the sound of it firing. It lasted for several seconds, and it was too loud to hear whether anyone had been hurt. 

He stuck his head up again before kicking away from the ground, turning towards the weapon itself as his fellows climbed to their feet. 

Din suddenly spotted a familiar head of black hair, and he smiled underneath his helmet. He landed by the former shock trooper, who smirked at him from behind her heavy artillery gun. 

“Where’ve you been?” Cara asked sarcastically. “Thought you’d never come.” 

“You kiddin’? And miss this?” Din retaliated, activating his flame thrower and aiming for a ‘troopers face. “Never.” 

They fought for a while, battling through streets and heading towards the Arc Pulse Generator. Din could hear his fellows discussing between themselves how to take it down over the comms as they avoided Imps, and most ideas were shot down quickly. 

But suddenly, the weapon stopped on its own, the sound of its engines dying as a transport halted just before its feet. Din tensed from where he stood with the others, blaster held tight in his fingers as the door fell open. 

“Gideon,” Cara growled, her own weapon trained on the Moff’s head as he stepped out of the transport. He didn’t seem bothered by the group of angry Mandalorians aiming every weapon they had at his head, in fact he looked practically laid back. 

“So  _ nice  _ to see you again, Din Djarin,” he began, his polite smile not reaching his eyes as his hoard of Death Troopers milled around him. “I believe there’s no point for amiability is there?” 

Din’s shoulders tensed, and the Moff smirked in triumph. “You all know what this weapon is. What it has done to countless amounts of your brethren. So, I’ll ask this now. Where is the Asset?” 

“You won’t be laying a  _ hand  _ on the kid,” Cara suddenly spat, the sound of her blaster charging echoing around the courtyard they stood in. 

The Reactor’s engines whirred again, but halted at the Moff’s raised hand. He sighed in disappointment. “You don’t seem to realise what I have, do you?” he asked, and Din’s brow furrowed in confusion under his helmet. 

The Moff gestured with his hand as if to call something forward and a group of ‘troopers came forwards, Jax held up by his arms between them. 

Din’s breath halted in his chest as he took in the thief’s -  _ his thief's  _ \- split lip and wheezing breaths. There didn’t seem to be any permanent injury, and no broken bones that Din could see. But it was obvious his ribs were bruised, and the warrior wanted to do nothing other than get him out of harm's way and back to the ship. 

Jax smiled at him, wincing in pain as it opened the cut on his lip as Gideon strolled towards him, pulling something from a holster on his leg. 

“Now,” he said, standing in front of Jax, turned towards the group of warriors. “I’ll ask again. Where is the Asset?” And he unsheathed a blade made of pure darkness, one every Mandalorian knew of. 

A silence descended on them all as Gideon suddenly held the blade under Jax’s chin, and the thief clenched his jaw, casting terror filled brown eyes to Din. 

“You are not meant to wield that weapon,” the Armourer suddenly called out, moving through them to come to a stop at Din’s side. “That is a weapon of Mandalore. It belongs in Mandalorian hands.” 

“Yes and the Arc Pulse Generator plans were meant to be destroyed. And yet, here we are,” Gideon said, his smile turning cruel and cold as he inched the tip of the darksaber closer to Jax’s jugular. 

The Armourer held onto Din’s bicep to keep him steady, whilst his own mind was whirling in panic, his own gaze not moving from Jax. The thief shook his head incrementally, the both of them knowing what would happen if one wrong move was taken. 

“What will it take for you to leave this planet?” she asked, hand gripping the mallet she held. 

“The return of my Asset. And the death of Jackson Tournier,” Gideon replied, pressing the tip of the darksaber closer to Jax’s neck, who was glaring at the Moff now. “The Empire simply cannot have the son of two undesirables running around freely now can we?” 

Din had to restrain himself from taking a step forward, watching as Jax’s brown eyes locked onto his. He could see the determination in his gaze as Gideon finally turned his back on him. “And, I’m afraid this Covert of yours won’t be around for much longer,” Gideon said with a smirk as the Arc Pulse Generator’s engines whirred again, and the warriors tensed. 

Two things happened at once then. Jax flicked out a knife from his sleeve, jamming into one and then the other ‘trooper’s legs from where he knelt between them, sending them to the ground with shouts of pain. The other, was that a large blast hit the back of the Generator, sending it careening to the ground. 

And all hell broke loose again. Din didn’t get a good look at Jax before he was suddenly surrounded by ‘troopers, Cara at his back and red blaster bolts shooting past them. 

They were easy to take out, and Din rushed over to Jax’s side, finally coming face to face with Gideon’s sneering expression. It was difficult to beat him, and Jax ended up closer to the business end of the darksaber than Din liked, enough to feel the heat emanating from the blade. 

Din aimed blaster shots at the Moff, but he seemed incredibly capable of dodging each of them whilst keeping Jax on his toes. The thief was using every blade in his arsenal, kicking up with his feet to use the ones in his boots, but being unable to land a good hit. 

The Generator exploding behind them proved to be a suitable distraction, and when Din spotted Gideon’s gaze flicking towards it, he aimed and fired a solid hit to the Moff’s shoulder, sending him down to his knees. 

A blade suddenly flicked past his cheek, a trail of blood dripping from Gideon’s chin. Din’s gaze snapped to where Jax knelt on the ground, clutching his side tight and staring at Gideon with an angry expression, jaw clenched tight. 

The Moff glanced his fingers over the wound, taking in the dark red of blood on his gloves. He sneered in detest and began to make his way to his knees before a blaster was held against his head, stilling his movement. 

“Move, and I shoot,” Din growled as the sounds of battle died around them. 

Gideon raised his hands above his head placatingly, and Jax could see the man knew when he was beat. It didn’t take long for the ‘troopers to be dispatched, and Jax flopped to the ground on his ass, letting out a large puff of air. 

“It seems you underestimated Mandalorians again, Moff Gideon,” came the Armourer’s voice. She landed gracefully on the ground, deactivating her jetpack with ease. Her helmeted gaze landed on the darksaber a few meters away, and she picked it up with reverence. 

“The technology you deemed to us as our death has been destroyed. And the very weapon you wielded is now back in the right hands,” she told him, staring the man down behind the visor. “I’d say that’s enough humiliation for one day, yes?” 

Gideon didn’t get to reply as he was hauled to his feet by a pair of Mandos, and led away quietly. Din didn’t know what would happen to him, but he hoped whatever it was wasn’t swift. 

“How many did it take out?” he asked her, gesturing to the Generator behind them which still smoked from the fire eating away at its interior. 

“Three. They will be given a proper burial once we’ve relocated,” she told him. 

“So, you’ve finally given up on this planet?” Din asked, a slight bit of cheek in his voice. 

“I believe that being attacked twice is as good an excuse as any to find a new home. Don’t you?” she told him, tucking the blaster she held into her belt with ease. “What about you? Will you act on your feelings? Or brood for the end of time?” 

Din rolled his eyes behind the helmet, glancing at where Jax was picking up one of his knives and dusting it off. They parted ways, murmuring the farewell quietly before Din turned to the thief. 

“We need to check on the kid,” Jax told him bluntly, and Din nodded in assent. Who knew what the little Womp Rat had gotten up to while they had been gone. 

“Are you alright?” he asked worriedly, taking in the arm still wrapped around Jax’s middle and how the thief tongued at his split lip. 

“Yeah, they’re just bruised,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. 

“Good,” Din said quietly, taking another step closer to Jax. He could see how deep a brown his eyes were, how they gazed at him in confusion as Din carefully and slowly curled his hand around the nape of Jax’s neck, giving him plenty of time to protest. 

The thief seemed to hold his breath as Din pulled his forehead to meet the metal of his helmet. It seemed to go deathly quiet and Jax could only concentrate on the coolness of the beskar and the heat of the warrior’s palm. He settled, closing his eyes as he melted into the grip. 

“Are  _ you  _ okay?” Jax asked quietly, opening his eyes to lock gazes with the helmet. 

“Yeah, just worried about you  _ di’kut _ ,” Din replied, grip tensing slightly. 

“Well, you know who’s worried about both of us?” Jax asked with a meaningful look. 

Din heaved a sigh, “the kid.” 

“Come on, let’s head back before the kid destroys the ship looking for us,” Jax said, taking Din’s hand in his as the two of them wandered back to the ship. 

That night, the two of them lay in Din’s cot, Jax’s head cradled underneath Din’s chin while his ungloved fingers teased through his curls. The kid had caused minimal damage to the ship, and was determined to cling onto them for dear life when they returned. 

They didn’t bother asking about the pair of Storm Troopers they found unconscious outside, merely tied them up without a word. 

Jax was half asleep by this stage, eyelids half mast as his breathing grew level. 

Seized with a sudden sense of confidence Din shook Jax’s shoulder to wake him. 

“Whazzit?” he asked sleepily, brown eyes flickering around the room for danger. He glanced to see Din sitting up, and the thief hurried to follow, blankets pooling around his waist as he cradled the little one to his chest. 

“I want to take it off,” Din said quietly, gazing at Jax who rubbed his eyes in confusion. 

“What, your shirt? ‘Cause that’s gonna take a while to get it over the helmet,” Jax replied with a laugh. 

“No,” Din cut him off, and held there for a few breaths in silence as it finally clicked with the thief. 

“ _ Oh _ ,” Jax said, brown eyes widening in surprise. “But I thought no living being could see you without it?” 

“Yes, but that rule is only subject to the Covert,” Din explained, but only got a look of confusion in return. “Mandalorians work in clans, and the Covert are strict with The Creed. But, I am my own clan, me and the kid. And you. Which means I don’t necessarily need to abide by some rules.” 

Jax still felt slightly confused, but watched with wide eyes as Din lifted his hands and released the latches of the helmet. It came away easily, and Jax lifted his fingers in slight awe. 

They traced his cheekbones, the curve of his jaw and slant of his nose. He gently ran his fingers through the unruly hair that was a darker brown to Jax’s. The dark piercing eyes were immediately Jax's favourite trait of Din’s and he spent a few minutes taking him in as a whole. 

“Beautiful,” he whispered, his hand placed gently on Din’s cheek and the warrior leaned into the touch with a relieved huff of air. 

The Mando suddenly drew Jax’s head towards his own again, foreheads touching and hand warm on the back of his neck as their breaths ghosted hot against each other's cheekbones. 

The kid gurgled happily from where he sat, and Din picked him up gently, allowing the little one to pat his face uncoordinatedly and tug on his hair, much to Jax’s amusement. 

The two of them stood in front of the Armourer, the heat of the furnace piercing through his clothes. Jax clenched Din’s hand harder, a hot feeling bursting in his stomach as he watched the gold helmet turn to him. 

“Recite the Creed, Jackson Tournier, known as Jax,” she told him, and Jax couldn’t take his eyes off the red helmet held in her hands. A helmet that matched the armour he wore. 

The words felt powerful to Jax, and they settled about his shoulders like a weight; something to uphold for the rest of his life. Din clutched his hand, pride bubbling in his chest as his  _ Cyare  _ swore into the Creed. 

“This is the Way,” Jax finished. 

“This is the Way,” Din and the Armourer echoed, and the helmet was slid gracefully onto his head. 

“You have sworn yourself to the way of a Mandalorian. Now do you swear your life to this man?” she asked, and Jax turned to look at Din, startling slightly at the sight of the red helmet in the reflection of the beskar. 

“Yes, I do,” Jax replied. “With all my heart.” 

“ _ Ni cuy’ juaan gar ratiin _ ,” Din replied, and Jax grinned behind the helmet. 

“ _ Ni kelir cabuor gar ratiin, ner kar’ta _ ,” Jax intoned, grasping the back of Din’s neck and pulling their heads together with a soft  _ clink  _ of metal. 

“ _ Aliit ori’shya tal’din _ ,” the Armourer said to them, and they echoed it back.

“We ready to go?” Jax asked through the helmet, lifting himself up into the cockpit with ease. The kid cooed from where he sat in the modified seat, strapped in safely with the little silver ball clutched in his hands. 

“Yes, strap in,” Din told him. 

“Where are we off to?” Jax asked, settling into his seat carefully. He found it difficult to get used to the added weight of the armour, but it wasn’t too heavy that it hindered him completely. 

Din paused for a minute as he thought, his gaze turning to the wide expanse of space outside the ship. 

“Anywhere we want,” he told Jax, smiling underneath his helmet as he inputted coordinates into the navigation computer and the blue of hyper-space enveloped them. 


End file.
